Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's decision to opt out of all but a handful of appearances with his opponents this fall means an influential Iowa audience will lose the chance to judge him alongside his rivals next month.The AARP matters in Iowa this year more than it ever has, not just because so many older voters caucus, but because it is conducting a campaign along with the SEIU and the Business Roundtable called "Divided We Fail," which is giving the local Iowa chapters a great deal to do. My unscientific impression in Iowa was that the local AARP chapters functioned like social clubs for elderly women and were extremely vibrant, especially in the smaller towns. A substantial fraction of the candidate events I attended in Iowa featured a row of people, between middle- and old-age, seated right up front, wearing the red AARP Divided We Fail T-shirts, and ready to ask questions as soon as the candidates stopped speaking.Obama plans to skip AARP's Sept. 20 forum in Davenport, where New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson will address about 2,400 Iowa seniors and a national public television audience.
The decision to not attend the AARP event, aimed at issues important to people 50 and older, could nag at the Illinois senator, some Democrat activists and political observers said. AARP is a national association formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons.
"I understand what he's trying to do, and I guess I'll cut him some slack," said undecided Iowa City Democrat Anne Tanner, who is 68. "But the audience skews older in Iowa, and I don't think a lot of them are going to understand."
Obama's absence at the AARP forum is a real missed opportunity to reach that critical constituency, which will also be holding AARP-organized debate watch parties tonight.
--Garance Franke-Ruta
