Gephardt turns back on debate, stays in Iowa to campaign

Democratic presidential candidate Dick Gephardt began his day in Boone, where he met with over 50 local democrats who’d gathered for coffee.Gephardt campaigned in Jefferson last night after meeting with union activists yesterday afternoon. Gephardt says he decided to campaign in Iowa rather than be in Boston last night for a candidate debate because the kickoff event of the presidential campaign — the Iowa Caucuses — is just a couple of months away.Gephardt says when you get to the end of a campaign, schedules get tougher to change and you can’t just jerk everything apart to make it to another debate. Gephardt says he’s participated in at least 21 debates so far, and will do many more before January 19th when the Iowa Caucuses are held. Gephardt says he’ll focus on pointing out the differences he has with the other candidates on a host of issues, like trade and health care. One of Gephardt’s aides was involved in a fracas with a Howard Dean staffer last week after a Gephardt speech in Des Moines. Gephardt was asked by a reporter whether he was satisfied with the way the incident and its aftermath were handled. “There’s nothing more to talk about,” Gephardt said. Gephardt won the Iowa Caucuses in 1988 when he sought his party’s presidential nomination before.