The Day: In Presidential Debate on Domestic Policy, No Talk of Cities For all the thousands of words that poured out of President Obama and Mitt Romney in their debate Wednesday night, neither man could find room for a word that applies to more Americans than just about any other: cities. Nearly all Americans live in cities and their suburbs. But even though this first presidential debate of 2012 focused on domestic policy, the two candidates couldn't devote so much as a sentence to any thoughts they might have had on mass transit or crime or crumbling infrastructure or homelessness or other matters that enormously affect cities, including, of course, New York. While we're at it, another word that never arose is "guns." Thanks go to Mitchell Moss, a professor of urban policy and planning at New York University, for pointing this out. The omission of guns might be shrugged off were it not for the fact that the debate took place in Denver, minutes by car from two of the worst massacres in modern American history - the shootings at Columbine High School in 1999 and at a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., less than three months ago. To be in that corner of the country and make no mention of gun violence was somewhat like traveling to northern Japan and saying nothing about its nuclear crisis. Some of the blame rested with Jim Lehrer, the debate moderator, who asked no urban-specific questions (and who showed no sign of being in control as the candidates rattled on well past their allotted time). Two themes that Mr. Lehrer set forth at the start of the evening were the economy and the role of government. Both of them directly affect the life and, often enough, the death of cities. But Mr. Lehrer made no such connection. Nor did either candidate do so on his own. "Cities and metropolitan areas are the engines of the economy," said Bruce Katz, founding director of the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution. For all intents and purposes, they are the American economy. By Mr. Katz's reckoning, 84 percent of Americans live in cities and surrounding areas, and account for 91 percent of the country's gross domestic product. No question, many of the debate's topics affect urbanites the same as everyone else, like health care, taxes, education and energy. But issues at the heart of everyday life in New York and other big cities were left outside the door. As usual, it may be added. Both Mr. Katz and Professor Moss said that the relationship between the federal government and America's cities is changing profoundly, and will probably continue to do so no matter which man wins in November. Professor Moss singled out the Community Development Block Grant program, which is "a key way that federal money is given out to cities, for whatever they want to do." It is "going to be cut severely," he said. Similarly, Mr. Katz said that Washington was already "scaling back," mass transit being an example. "I think this is the wave of the future," he said. The federal government will still be an investor in transportation infrastructure, but a broader portion of the investment is going to come locally, and will come from the private sector. Politics is always a consideration. Big cities typically vote Democratic, so national Republicans regard campaigning there as a waste of time, and Democrats feel they can take them for granted. In New York City, where Mr. Obama won about 75 percent of the vote in 2008, you'd be hard-pressed to think of the last time someone running for president from a major party bothered to truly campaign among us. Not just go to a hotel ballroom to squeeze donors for money, or call on a celebrity loudmouth, or drop by a television studio to appear on "The View," but hit the streets and shake hands with real people. The last occasion that Professor Moss could recall was a rally in Washington Square Park that Jerry Brown, now California's governor once again, held during the 1992 Democratic primary. "The reason they don't care about cities is that the independent voters they're seeking are in the suburbs," Professor Moss said. This is, and will remain, "a metro nation," Mr. Katz said. National politicians are "about 25 years out of whack" with demographic and economic changes under way both here and abroad, he said, adding: "So the conversation in Washington seems to be happening in almost a parallel universe to the conversation at the local level, where the rubber hits the road, where you really have to grapple with issues. You can't duck them. But the presidential candidates and their ineffectual debate moderator just did.