Trump will ‘definitely not’ participate in Thursday Fox debate -Wash Post

After seeking the advice of his Twitter followers, Donald Trump has decided not to participate in Thursday’s presidential debate between Republican candidates in Des Moines, Iowa, following a row with debate host Fox News.

Trump made the remarks at a news conference soon after Fox announced the lineup for its GOP debate tomorrow – the last one before the crucial Iowa Caucus on February 1.

“Let’s see how much money Fox makes without me in the debate”, Trump told the news conference on Tuesday.

Trump has been engaged in a public spat with Fox News since the network hosted the first debate and Kelly asked Trump about his treatment of woman, prompting a stream of insults from the candidate.

Ms Kelly moderated the first debate of the campaign cycle in August when she was tough on Mr Trump.

According to Bloomberg News, Trump will host an event for the non-profit organization Wounded Warriors during the time slot of the debate.

Instead, the real estate tycoon said he would be holding another event in Iowa which would raise funds for veterans.

“She will absolutely be on the debate stage on Thursday night”. Ted Cruz will take Trump’s place at the center of the stage and he will be joined by Ben Carson, Marco Rubio, Chris Christie, Jeb Bush, John Kasich and Rand Paul.

A Fox spokesman did not immediately respond to Trump’s decision.

Calling the withdrawal “unprecedented”, Fox News said Trump would still be allowed to participate in the debate, but that he not would not be allowed to “dictate the moderators or the questions”.

In a Tuesday statement to Business Insider, a spokesperson for the network mused about whether global leaders would be fair to a potential President Trump.

Mr Trump’s blunt-speaking candidacy has boosted ratings for the Republican presidential debates. And I think they can do a lot better than Megyn Kelly. The party sanctioned six primary debates and previously threatened to punish any candidates for participating in non-sanctioned debates.

“It’s time that somebody plays a grown-up”, Trump said as he complained about Fox’s tone.

Cruz, a one-time college debate champion, quickly invited Trump to a different sort of duel.

But while such threats seemed like part of a dance Trump did with the media to build audiences and try to game the moderators, this is a serious matter coming as it does two nights before the last debate before Iowa.

Later, the network poked fun at Trump in a satirical statement: “We learned from a secret back channel that the Ayatollah and Putin both intend to treat Donald Trump unfairly when they meet with him if he becomes president”. And at a Cruz rally in Ottumwa, Iowa, Vander Plaats bashed Trump for describing his supporters as so loyal that he could “shoot somebody” and not lose support, and for saying in a previous interview that he had never sought forgiveness from God.