David Plouffe

WASHINGTON - President Obama has blocked out three days to prepare for the October debates, but with the constant pressures that come with one of the world's most important jobs, aides worry he may not get enough practice at the podium. The debate retreat, scheduled to start Sunday in Henderson, Nev., a suburb that sprawls away from Las Vegas, includes time for the daily battery of presidential meetings, leaving room for three afternoon debate sessions - if no crises flare up. Obama has already canceled some debate preparation because of events in the Middle East, said Jen Psaki, his campaign press secretary.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- President Obama appeared in Florida with former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, whose presence he cited as evidence that his plans aren't partisan but just plain sensible. Crist shows that his values "are not Democratic values or Republican values," Obama said. "They are American values. " Introducing the president to the crowd in his state, Crist said he is no longer in the GOP because "they left me. " The break-up occurred in 2010 after Crist left the Republican party and ran for U.S. Senate unsuccessfully as an independent.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- An afternoon thunderstorm in downtown Charlotte gave Democrats some measure of comfort Thursday, validating organizers' decision to bring the final night of the convention indoors. But it also served to underscore the inherent gamble they were taking by attempting to hold the proceedings in the open air in the first place. Four years ago, Denver proved to be a more hospitable setting for Barack Obama to deliver his acceptance speech outside. When his campaign team first explored the idea, they were so nervous about the possibility of rain that they asked the meteorologists union to study 100 years worth of conditions for the city on the day of the speech.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Four years ago, when Barack Obama gave his last speech to a Democratic National Convention, 85,000 cheering supporters under a broad Denver sky helped him ride a wave of emotion all the way to the White House. Now, as he prepares to accept his party's nomination for a second term, aides and advisors say he faces a far more difficult task. "There was less riding on that speech than now, just because there's a closer election," said David Axelrod, a longtime advisor and message guru who joined Obama on a swing through battleground states this week.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Mitt Romney and his fellow Republicans would dearly like the November election to be a referendum on Barack Obama, with Americans voting largely based on a single question: “Are you better off today that you were four years ago?” President Obama and his team have some difficulty with that query - as evidenced in their Labor Day weekend talk show appearances - and want voters to ponder at least two other questions: If you aren't better off, who helped dig the hole?

MOORESVILLE, N.C. - David Plouffe, a senior aide to President Obama, said Mitt Romney's campaign is built on a “tripod of lies,” and he blasted the Republican presidential nominee for never mentioning the war in Afghanistan and U.S troops serving overseas in his acceptance speech. Romney “didn't talk about the war we're waging in Afghanistan, or our troops, which is an amazing thing for someone who wants to be, 66 days from now, elected as our commander in chief,” Plouffe said Sunday on ABC's “This Week.”  “Maybe that's because Gov. Romney called our ending of the war in Iraq 'tragic,' has opposed our plans in Afghanistan in terms of bringing troop home.

Click here to download TV listings for the week of Sept. 2 - 8 in PDF format This week's TV Movies     SATURDAY Good Morning America (N) 7 a.m. KABC The Chris Matthews Show 2012 campaigns: Joe Klein, Time; John Heilemann, New York Magazine; Helene Cooper, the New York Times ; Katty Kay, BBC . (N) 5 p.m. KNBC McLaughlin Group 6:30 p.m. KCET SUNDAY CBS News Sunday Morning Glass as an artistic medium at the Toledo Museum of Art; the Black Keys.

Press reports on the choice of moderators for this fall's presidential debates center on the selection of CNN's Candy Crowley, the first woman to host one of the top-of-the-ticket showdowns in 20 years. With ABC's Martha Raddatz moderating the lone vice-presidential debate, in mid-October, that represents a righteous breakthrough for women. But what's also even more heartening about both selections is that it puts two veteran journalists, best known for their work in the field, rather than an anchor's chair, into the moderator's seat.

White House senior advisor David Plouffe on Sunday defended criticisms of President Obama's announcement that the administration would cease deporting young immigrants who came to the country illegally as children. “This is not a political move. This builds on a lot of steps we've already taken,” Plouffe said on CNN's “State of the Union.” “Who knows how the politics will turn out? But this decision was the right decision…. I've ceased making predictions on things because we'll see how they turn out,” he added, as he reiterated Obama's justification for changes to the government's enforcement of immigration laws.