The Indiana delegation to the Charlotte convention is missing at least one big name.  Senate candidate Joe Donnelly didn’t go.

The 2012 Democratic National Convention is Barack Obama’s convention and the President is a big issue in the Senate race between Democrat Joe Donnelly and Republican Richard Mourdock.  If you’re Donnelly, there may be no better way to create distance between Obama and yourself than to stay home.  Instead, Donnelly took a tour of the facilities at Ivy Tech in Indianapolis.  “I’ve got better things to do than go down there,” he said.  “I’ve got a chance to be here in Indiana.”

Never mind that there are fundraising opportunities at the Democratic National Convention as well as the chance to build enthusiasm among Indiana delegates.  Donnelly is already facing attack ads that tie him to Barack Obama and criticism from the campaign of Richard Mourdock no matter what he does.  “When you have a 75 to 80% voting record in support of President Obama as Joe Donnelly does,” said Mourdock spokesman Brose McVey, “you want to be as far away from Charlotte this week as you can be.”

Donnelly won’t admit to that but he is also reluctant to embrace the President.  Barack Obama faces a double digit deficit to Mitt Romney in Indiana and common sense tells you that a candidate in a dead heat is better off on his own.  “You know if Richard Mourdock wants to run against Barack Obama, he ought to run for President,” says Donnelly.  “I’m running for Senator for the state of Indiana so we can create jobs here, create opportunity here and that’s what this election’s about.”

Donnelly’s wife Jill is in Charlotte.  She will speak to the Indiana delegation Wednesday, as will the Democratic candidate for governor, John Gregg.  He’s in Charlotte for just a day.