Clinton pushing for Indiana debate with Obama

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By Beth Boehne

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Hillary Rodham Clinton campaign is pushing for more debates with Barack Obama, accepting offers Friday for matchups in Indiana ahead of the state's May 6 primary.

The move by Clinton's campaign came two days after a prime-time debate between the presidential contenders that drew the largest television audience of any this election cycle.

Obama indicated the following day that he thought the 21 debates among the Democratic candidates had been enough.

But Clinton's campaign tried to apply some pressure Friday for more debates by taking up an offer from the private Indiana Debate Commission, which has proposed an April 24 debate. It also said it would work with Gary Mayor Rudy Clay for one in that city, but he backed off that plan on Friday.

"There remain a good number of undecided voters and they want more information and they are tuning in in unprecedented numbers," said Howard Wolfson, Clinton's national communications director. "If the American people are as engaged as they are and as interested as they are in this race and these issues, they deserve to have the candidates come before them and take tough questions."

The two campaigns have accepted invitations for a debate in North Carolina, which also has its primary on May 6, but they have not agreed on a date. Wednesday's debate was in Pennsylvania, which votes on Tuesday.

Obama campaign spokesman Kevin Griffis said that of the 21 nationally televised Democratic debates, four had been solely between Obama and Clinton. He said the Indiana debate offers were under consideration.

"Our focus in the coming weeks will be on meeting with voters in Indiana and hearing directly from them," Griffis said. "We're not going to make any final decisions about the senator's schedule until after Pennsylvania."

Clay, the Gary mayor who is an Obama supporter, said he was revising the proposal he made Thursday for a debate at the city's convention center, instead wanting the candidates to visit separately to talk about urban issues.

"If you have a take-the-gloves-off debate, they will probably, as they have done in the past, miss issues that concern many, many urban cities around this country," Clay said. "We would ask each candidate to sit on the stage alone and address, directly, urban issues for urban America."

Clay said he had not yet talked with top officials of either campaign about his suggestion.

The Indiana Debate Commission includes several journalism organizations, the Indiana State Bar Association and the League of Women Voters of Indiana.

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