Obama Dials Back Campaigning to Watch Gustav

Barack Obama curtailed his Labor Day speeches to unions in the Midwest today to keep the focus on the Gulf Coast, asking instead for silent prayer and donations to the Red Cross. Republicans, after scaling back the opening of this week's convention because of Hurricane Gustav, had criticized Obama for continuing to campaign, the AP reports.

Obama will return to Chicago today to plan the week's schedule around the hurricane, after campaign stops in crucial battleground states, Michigan and Wisconsin. While speaking there, he tied labor to disasters by saying, "The idea behind the labor movement is that you don't walk alone. Each of us are subject to tragedy and disaster." (More Barack Obama stories.)