Clinton cancels plans on Palin news

NEW YORK, Sept. 17 (UPI) -- Former Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton pulled out of a New York rally after learning Sarah Palin would also attend, a spokesman says.

The event, sponsored by the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, is set for Monday at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza to coincide with the opening of the United Nations General Assembly, The New York Daily News reported Wednesday. The group says its purpose is to protest the expected appearance of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Clinton, a U.S. senator from New York, had agreed to appear but pulled out when the group said Palin, the Republican U.S. vice presidential nominee, was also confirmed, spokesman Philippe Reines told the Daily News.

"(Palin's) attendance was news to us," Reines said Tuesday. "Clearly there was some miscommunication because this was never billed to us as a partisan political event. Sen. Clinton will therefore not be attending this event."