WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top congressional Republican John Boehner on Wednesday urged President Barack Obama to delay a planned jobs speech to a joint session of Congress by a day in order to avoid "impediments."

Democrat Obama had asked to address Congress at 8 p.m. next Wednesday, a time that overlapped with a scheduled televised debate among Republican presidential contenders seeking their party's nomination to face Obama in the 2012 election.

"It is my recommendation that your address be held on the following evening, when we can ensure there will be no parliamentary or logistical impediments that might detract from your remarks," Boehner, the speaker of the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, said in a letter to the president.

"I respectfully invite you to address a Joint Session of Congress on Thursday, September 8, 2011 in the House Chamber, at a time that works best for your schedule," he said.

(Reporting by Alister Bull; editing by Will Dunham)