Republican Frontrunners No-shows for Debate

The top four Republican White House hopefuls have been roundly criticized for not attending a presidential debate Thursday night on minority issues. Debate moderator Tavis Smiley, a talk show host, said "there are those in the Republican Party who do not understand the importance of reaching out to people of color." Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, John McCain and Mitt Romney all cited scheduling conflicts for not attending the debate at Morgan State University in Baltimore.Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich says he's "puzzled" by the frontrunners' decision. Gingrich says it was a mistake for the top-tier candidates not to attend. Republicans who did take part are Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Representatives Duncan Hunter of California, Ron Paul of Texas and Tom Tancredo of Colorado. Conservative activist Alan Keyes also participated. He announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination last week.