FLASHBACK- Reagan skipped Iowa debate. Yes he did. He knew he was losing Iowa and focused on NH. Trump knows he will lose Iowa and by skipping debate he can blame FOX news.
Roger has lost control of the stable.
(no link)
Rating the debate and nondebate on Iowa hustings
Christian Science Monitor, The (Published as Christian Science Monitor, The (Boston, MA)) - January 9, 1980
Author/Byline: Godfrey Sperling Jr.,
Staffocratic nondebate? The answers, based on editorial comment and the views of politicians from both parties:
* The GOP was the only clear winner in the confrontation of six of its presidential candidates.
The consensus of observers is that all of the debaters - John B. connally, George Bush, Sens. Howard H. Baker Jr. and Robert Dole, US Reps. John B. Anderson and Philip M. Crane - came through on television as intelligent, articulate, and as men of high caliber.
Whether Ronald Reagan, by his absence, was the ‘loser,” as some analysts were saying just after the debate, is not clear. Politicians from around the United States say they see no signs of erosion of support for Mr. Reagan. He remains the distinct front-runner among Republicans.
(snip)