He then said that the Trump portion of the debate was finished for the evening and that the candidates could then focus on the issues.
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He also reiterated that he had no intention of joining the debate, although, he said Fox “wanted me to do it very much”. In Iowa, however, polls suggest he’s locked in a tight race with Texas Sen.
“I’m not going to any Donald Trump event over across town on some sort of faux veteran sort of issue”, Gilmore said.
With just days to go until the Iowa caucuses, the state’s longtime Republican governor said Thursday that the federal government has failed to assure the American people that they are safe. The tone, without businessman Donald Trump, was notably respectful of one another as the candidates tried to differentiate themselves from one another.
Donald Trump has now famously chose to skip tonight’s GOP presidential debate hosted by Fox News and moderated by Megyn Kelly. “And everyone on this stage is stupid, fat and ugly and Ben, you’re a bad surgeon”.
At the debate, Trump’s rivals mocked his brash style and criticized his decision to sit out the debate.
Aides to both candidates say they will be traveling to the Trump event after participating in the undercard debate for candidates whose poll numbers aren’t high enough to qualify for the main stage.
Iowans, whom Mr. Cruz needs to pick him over Mr. Trump when they caucus on Monday, launched into an ode about how honest and serious Iowans are.
Conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh said, “Trump is busting convention and doing everything everybody says not to do”.
“The rest of the candidates will have a time to debate each other, interact with each other, without that wild card being there and that could really help some of these people making last minute surges”, Wiltse said.
Before Trump took the stage, some of his well-known supporters spoke.
Also in a delicate spot is the network, which has engaged in a fraught relationship with Trump for months after he tangled with moderator Megyn Kelly in the first debate in August. “I was disappointed”, said Bryan Moon of West Des Moines, Iowa, who was attending an event for Republican Marco Rubio.
Santorum quickly expressed deep frustration with the drama surrounding Trump.
Fox News chairman Roger Ailes contacted Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, to gauge Trump’s seriousness about dropping out of the debate, but did not seek to change his mind, network officials said, according to The New York Times.
The link, which Trump posted on Twitter, includes the seal of the Donald J. Trump Foundation, and a form for contributions.
Pat Wiltfang, 59, of Grinnell, Iowa, a lifelong Republican who had watched all the previous debates, said she was pleased with Trump’s decision and would gladly skip this one.
Trump was joined at the event by two of his rivals, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Pennsylvania Sen.
The pair, social conservatives who have always been at odds with the more mainstream Republican establishment, had been relegated to Fox News’ “undercard” debate of the candidates with low polling which takes place earlier than the full-blown debate at 9 p.m. EST (0200 GMT).
Trump’s premier antagonist, Ted Cruz, has challenged Trump to debate one on one, and two super PACS backing Trump offered him a “a truly fantastic deal, pledging to donate $1.5 million to charities committed to helping veterans if Mr. Trump agrees to debate Senator Cruz in Iowa”.
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“I don’t think you need to be a politician to tell the truth”, he said.
