Donald Trump may have mastered the art of the real-estate deal, but when it comes to debates, he’s still an apprentice.
The celebrity businessman is having difficulty securing commitments from Republican presidential candidates for a Dec. 27 debate that he’s planning to moderate in Des Moines, Iowa.
Mitt Romney became the latest big-name candidate to send his regrets, telling Fox News’ Neil Cavuto that he informed Trump earlier on Tuesday that he would be too busy to appear. Romney noted that he already is planning to participate in two previously scheduled debates in Iowa this month.
“I understand why Governor Romney decided not to do it,” Trump told ABC News. He declined to elaborate further.
Other candidates who have declined: Rep. Ron Paul and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman. In an interview on Monday with CNBC’s Larry Kudlow, Huntsman dismissed the Trump debate as a publicity stunt.
Running for president “isn’t about ratings for Donald Trump; this is about jobs for the American people,” Huntsman told Kudlow.
Newly minted front-runner Newt Gingrich has announced he will attend the Trump debate, as has former Sen. Rick Santorum.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., remain uncommitted, but on the CBS Early Show on Tuesday Bachmann told Erica Hill and Chris Wragge that she is concerned about Trump’s objectivity, because “he said he’s already leaning towards a candidate.”
The planned debate is being cosponsored by Newsmax and is scheduled to be aired on the Ion cable channel.
(Source: National Journal)
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2 Responses
Let them not come. Any and all debates are welcome. Its about time the questions will be “tzim zach” and not the “gotcha” questions posed by the ObamaMania Liberal media.
Having heard Trump interviewed many times there is no doubt this debate will be the best one yet.
There have been far more debates for this nomination than there have ever been before. I heard one pundit say this is because of the influence of reality TV: people watch in the hope of seeing a meltdown or at least a flub. Since Trump is involved in reality TV, his hosting a debate is not too surprising.