(AP) -- Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney may be the one to beat in the Republican presidential field, but he's decided not to attend the first debate of the party's 2012 nomination race.
No other big-name Republicans weighing bids, like Sarah Palin, are participating in the Thursday night debate in Greenville, S.C., nor are celebrity hopefuls, like Donald Trump.
The political spotlight on Thursday will be turned hundreds of miles to the north as President Barack Obama visits New York's ground zero just days after American forces killed Osama bin Laden, the terrorist behind the Sept. 11 attacks.
Only five potential candidates are participating in the South Carolina debate, a low-key affair much like the sluggish early days of the Republican contest itself.
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