GOP frontrunner Rudy Giuliani told Miami radio host Jim Defede Friday that he likely won't be coming to the CNN/YouTude presidential debate Sept. 17 in St. Petersburg. "I don’t think we can," the former New York mayor said in an interview that is scheduled to air Monday. "I think they would have to change the date. We have either five or six events that day. There was a little annoyance on the part of my campaign. (CNN and YouTube) just select a date and don’t think we have anything else to do." Hear Giuliani here.

Meanwhile, a group of GOP online strategists have started a online to save the debate. And Gov. Charlie Crist weighed in, saying he would personally ask the candidates to attend if need be. "I think the importance of Florida speaks for itself. We’re the fourth largest state ... We're the first megastate to have a primary. The importance that goes along with that is obvious."

UPDATE: Romney out, too. "Because of a travel schedule that will have us elsewhere in the country that day, our campaign had to decline the CNN/YouTube debate invitation,"  Romney Florida spokeswoman Kristy Campbell said. "We still have another six debate invitations during that 11-day time span in September that are under consideration – and it is an especially busy month as the end of the third quarter approaches."