Posted on 01/27/2016 7:52:44 AM PST by conservativejoy
In 2011, Donald Trump was scheduled to moderate a debate on Newsmax TV. During the preparations for the debate Trump went on with Megyn Kelly and lamented that only two candidates had agreed to be in the Des Moines debate at the end of December, days before the Iowa Primary.
Megyn Kelly asked Trump what his thoughts were on only two candidates confirming for his debate. He told Kelly, "we're not seeing a lot of courage here are we?" Trump continued, "not lots of courage, these Republicans are supposed to be brave."
Trump also told Kelly that she "had done a great job" moderating debates, and he wouldn't even be "close" to the moderator she was.
After his appearance, Trump bowed out of hosting the debate due to a lack of participation by the candidates. In a released statement, published by Politico, Trump said:
The Republican Party candidates are very concerned that sometime after the final episode of The Apprentice, on May 20th, when the equal time provisions are no longer applicable to me, I will announce my candidacy for President of the United States as an Independent and that, unless I conclusively agree not to run as an Independent, they will not agree to attend or be a part of the Newsmax debate scheduled for December 27, 2011. It is very important to me that the right Republican candidate be chosen to defeat the failed and very destructive Obama Administration, but if that Republican, in my opinion, is not the right candidate, I am not willing to give up my right to run as an Independent candidate. Therefore, so that there is no conflict of interest within the Republican Party, I have decided not to be the moderator of the Newsmax debate. The American people are embarrassed by the gridlock currently taking place in Washington. I must leave all of my options open because, above all else, we must make America great again!
Later in the statement Trump thanked Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum for having the "courage" to appear with him.
After Michelle Bachmann dropped out of the presidential contest in 2012, Trump blamed her defeat on her unwillingness to show up to his debate. Trump's campaign manager said yesterday that "his word is his bond." In 2011 Trump's word was that those who skip debates lacked "courage." In 2012 Trump's word was that not doing a debate in Iowa showed "disloyalty" to the people of Iowa. Are those words his bond?
Video at link.
I thought trump was brave and s maverick.
Guess not.
He his, but also not stupid to put himself in a position to be disqualified.
Nice try though!
[I thought trump was brave and s maverick.
Guess not.]
If it becomes clear that Fox was preparing to engage in unprofessional behavior by building some sort of ambush style debate with regard to trump, then i will support his decision to bail.
It isn’t Fox’s job to try and push people one way or another.
He isn’t brave, he’s a bully and scared of the girl. It is too, too funny.
Trump knows Cruz is about to pound him on substantive issues and Trump is terrified of it.
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Ted will be up there lecturing the audience on eminent domain and the audience will be thinking WTF is this CANADIAN talking about when we have $19 Trillion in debt, no jobs, and jihadis chopping off people’s heads.
When The Doors were on the Ed Sullivan Show. Ed demanded that Morrison change the word “higher” in Light My Fire. To “better”. Morrison sang it his way. A furious Sullivan had the producer tell The Doors. They’d never do the Sullivan Show again. A glib Morrison responded. “We just did the Sullivan Show”.
Reagan skipped the last debate before Iowa and it didn’t seem to hurt him any. It won’t hurt Trump either. 6 debates later he has little left to prove.
This is a lose lose for Fox news. :-)
As likely as they are being concerned that Trump is a British subject due to his mother’s birth.
(No, I don’t think that. All birthers are stupid, including those mistakenly worried about Trump’s NBC qualifications.)
“When Trump says one thing in the past that is different than today, it is because he is PLAYING THE MEDIA FOR FOOLS!”
Wow, I guess Mitt Romney was a media manipulation GENIUS, then!
One on one debates are against the RNC rules? I haven't seen that.
If Trump or Cruz want to debate one-on-one, all they have to do is get the RNC to sanction the debate.
Or they can get the RNC to send all the lesser candidates to the kiddie table at the next scheduled debate.
Trump knows Cruz is about to pound him on substantive issues and Trump is terrified of it. Tump's whole schtick is based on being a blow hard and not being called on substance. He'd crumble like a sack of potato chips.
It's also why Trump won't debate Cruz mano-a-mano.
I was about to say "What Kool-Aid are you drinking?" However, we do need to be more civil on FR.
Instead, I'd suggest you preface your comment with "perhaps" or "maybe" or "in my opinion". What you presented was an idea -- and perhaps a true one -- but only an idea. Perhaps you're on to something. However, I don't see much evidence to support it.
On the contrary, Trump has been consistently anti-MK since the August debate, he's consistently railed on media being scum and dishonest, he doesn't appear to be "terrified" of anything, nor is there any indication he will "crumble like a sack of potatoes". Historically AFIK all candidates with double-digit leads have no incentive to debate others.
To present your statements as emphatic truths makes you look like a Cruz-bot and narrow-minded. I say this not as a Trump-defender, but as one who still hasn't completely decided how I'll vote in our state's March 1 primary.
You may be on to something with his ideas lacking substance. I will say I was more pro-Trump until I read some thoughtful analysis of If we built Donald Trump's planned wall between the US and Mexico and somehow got Mexico to pay for it, what would happen then? And then I saw a list of all his failed business ventures and ideas, which now that I think about it isn't a bad thing, but shows a willingness for R & D, testing, and innovation.
I do believe that the most important thing is that the liberal machine gets crushed, and a move like Trump's pulling out of the debate is a step towards that.
In terms of the things Trump does, he has disclosed that media does respond to extremism and being outlandish. He's a smart guy. I believe, he's aware that such antics keeps him in the news and penetrates to some degree the media bias that would otherwise manipulate the news, which combined with the gerrymandering of the primaries by the GOPe, would produce a McCain or Romney type of candidate.
Reagan also walked out on the Russians at the Reykjavik Summit.
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