Barack Obama has declined an invitation to attend the forum for Democratic candidates in Carson City, Nevada on February 21.
Obama will instead be campaigning in Iowa that day. He will be in Las Vegas a few days before on February 18.
Candidates who have already confirmed for the forum are Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Joe Biden, Mike Gravel, Tom Vilsack, Chris Dodd and Bill Richardson. Wes Clark, who has yet to announce a run, will also be attending to speak.
The event will be hosted by George Stephanopoulos of ABC's This Week. Candidates have the opportunity to speak and will answer a series of questions.
A spokesperson for Obama said that it was a difficult decision not to attend the forum, but with the busy Senate schedule, it was hard to fit everything in.