Commission Rules Obama-McCain Debate to go Ahead as Planned

The Commission on Presidential Debates issued a statement saying the planned presidential debate scheduled for September 26, 2008, will be moving forward as originally scheduled.

Last night John McCain had proposed postponing the presidential debate to be held this Friday, until the Wall Street bailout plan had been agreed to by Congress. Today the Commission on Presidential Debates just issued a statement: "The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) is moving forward with its plan for the first presidential debate at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss. this Friday, September 26. The plans for this forum have been underway for more than a year and a half. The CPD’s mission is to provide a forum in which the American public has an opportunity to hear the leading candidates for the president of the United States debate the critical issues facing the nation. We believe the public will be well served by having all of the debates go forward as scheduled.” No word yet from either candidate on this statement and no word whether John McCain will attend. Last night it was reported by Political Ticker, that Lindsey Graham as well as another senior McCain adviser, asserted that "the Republican nominee will not go to the debate Friday if there's no deal on the bailout." President Bush had invited both presidential candidates to a meeting to discuss the bailout plan today and as reported last night, they accepted. [Update] A little more background on why John McCain became involved in the bailout plan to the extent where he was willing to skip the first scheduled debate, is shown from a video NewsBusters has supplied, where Bob Schieffer reported on this morning's Early Show, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told Sen. Lindsey Graham yesterday that the bailout plan would fail unless McCain came in. Bob Schieffer:

I am told, Maggie, that the way McCain got involved in this in the first place, the Treasury Secretary was briefing Republicans in the House yesterday, the Republican conference, asked how many were ready to support the bailout plan. Only four of them held up their hands. Paulson then called, according to my sources, Senator Lindsey Graham, who is very close to John McCain, and told him: you've got to get the people in the McCain campaign, you've got to convince John McCain to give these Republicans some political cover. If you don't do that, this whole bailout plan is going to fail. So that's how, McCain, apparently, became involved.

Updates will be added as information comes out.