November 21, 2007

Des Moines, IA — Republican presidential candidate Alan Keyes has accepted an invitation to participate in the last scheduled — and in some ways most important — Republican debate before the Jan. 3 first-in-the-nation Iowa Caucus.

The Des Moines Register's Republican Presidential Debate is scheduled for 1:00 pm on Dec. 12 at Iowa Public Television's Maytag Auditorium in Johnston, Iowa.

At last report, all major Republican candidates except former NY mayor Rudy Giuliani have also accepted the invitation to participate.

The Des Moines Register has a reputation for putting on fair and informative events. Their debates have become an Iowa tradition that reporters and editors from across the nation take seriously.

The debate will be broadcast live on statewide Iowa Public Television from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. (CT) Dec. 12, and will be re-broadcast at a later time on IPTV. The program will also be offered to public television stations across the country.

Ambassador Keyes expressed his thanks to the sponsors of the event, saying, "I'm grateful to those who will not abandon their resolve to raise the standard of political integrity. I pray God that my participation in the debate will vindicate their good will."