Bush, Kerry to stay in Missouri after debates

ST. LOUIS -- Making the most of their Missouri visit, President Bush and Democratic challenger Sen. John Kerry plan to linger in St. Louis following their televised debate Friday night at Washington University.

A day after the second in a trio of televised presidential debates, Bush is to attend an invitation-only fund-raiser Saturday morning at the downtown America's Center convention hall for Republican gubernatorial candidate Matt Blunt -- Missouri's secretary of state -- and the state's GOP. Bush's itinerary then calls for him to stump that day in Iowa and Minnesota.

Kerry expects to immediately follow the 90-minute, nationally televised question-and-answer session with a public rally at Art Hill in Forest Park near Washington University's campus.

Bush and Kerry are scheduled to arrive in St. Louis Thursday, the night before their televised showdown-- a town-hall format in which the candidates will field questions on any topic from voters tapped by the Gallup Organization.

Inside Washington University's Athletic Complex, a few dozen workers on Wednesday were busy assembling the set for the presidential debate. A group pieced together gray risers in a circle at the front of the gymnasium, while other workers hung blue drapery near camera platforms in the rear.

Joani Komlos with the Commission on Presidential Debates said the town hall participants will be given a chance to ask a practice question during a rehearsal, but said their actual questions are known only to moderator Charles Gibson.

Also, Washington University's Student Union president David Ader said separate off-campus appearances by liberal filmmaker Michael Moore and conservative commentator Sean Hannity were canceled this week.

He said Moore has pneumonia. Hannity said by phone he was recently asked to appear, had wanted to come, but that travel arrangements could not be worked out in time. He said he'll try to reschedule an appearance.

At the presidential debate, organizers expect roughly 1,000 audience members, and said about 2,500 members of the media have applied for credentials. Two additional gyms at the school will be equipped so the media can cover the debate.

The presidential debate will be the school's third since October 1992, when then-President Bush joined Democrat Bill Clinton and independent candidate Ross Perot.

The school was to have hosted another presidential debate in 1996, but that event was canceled.

On Oct. 17, 2000, Washington University pressed on with hosting a presidential debate between Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore just a day after then-Gov. Mel Carnahan died along with his son, Randy, and longtime aide Chris Sifford in a plane crash.

Carnahan, who was vying for the U.S. Senate, was flying to a campaign event in southeast Missouri when the plane piloted by his son went down in darkness, rain and fog.

After the crash, Carnahan was elected posthumously by Missouri voters to the Senate seat held by the GOP incumbent, John Ashcroft, now the nation's attorney general.

Carnahan's wife, Jean, was appointed to serve the first two years of the term in her husband's place but in 2002 lost her bid to finish the six-year term to Republican Jim Talent.

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Associated Press Writer Jim Suhr in St. Louis contributed to this story.

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On the Net:

Commission on Presidential Debates: http://www.debates.org/

Washington University debate: http://www.debate.wustl.edu

Kerry campaign: http://www.johnkerry.com

Bush campaign: http://www.georgewbush.com