WASHINGTON: All eyes are on Donald Trump as the Republican White House hopefuls prepare to do battle in the first debate of the 2024 race on Wednesday \u2014 with the main attraction threatening not to show up.<\/p>\n
Five months ahead of the start of primary elections to choose the party\u2019s flagbearer, the runaway frontrunner\u2019s grassroots support is as strong as ever, but numerous criminal cases have cast a pall over his comeback bid.
\nThe 77-year-old former president, who is rarely out of the headlines, has been vocal about possibly skipping the event in the midwesten city of Milwaukee, wary of sharing the limelight with lower-polling rivals.
\n\u201cI am leading the runner up, whoever that may now be, by more than 50 Points. Reagan didn\u2019t do it, and neither did others. People know my Record, one of the BEST EVER, so why would I Debate?\u201d Trump posted on social media on Thursday.
\nThe New York Times reported Friday that Trump had told aides he was planning to upstage his rivals by skipping the event, organized by Fox News, and instead sitting for an online interview with one of its former hosts, Tucker Carlson.
\n\u201cWe haven\u2019t confirmed anything on our end,\u201d a campaign spokesman told AFP.
\nWhether he shows up or not, Trump will be ripe for broadsides from opponents over the four criminal and three civil trials he faces involving allegations before, during and after his scandal-plagued presidency.
\n\u201cObviously, his legal issues are affecting this race,\u201d Fox News host Bret Baier, who will be moderating, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
\n\u201cAll these candidates have been asked non-stop about what\u2019s happening in courtrooms around the country. So he\u2019ll be a part of this debate whether he\u2019s there or not.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seven other candidates have qualified, including state governors Ron DeSantis and Doug Burgum, former vice president Mike Pence, Trump\u2019s UN ambassador Nikki Haley and South Carolina Senator Tim Scott.
\nBusinessman Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey governor Chris Christie are threatening DeSantis\u2019s runner-up spot in early nominating states Iowa and New Hampshire, and will be looking for openings to attack him.
\nThe Republican National Committee has told Trump he needs to make a final decision by Monday if he wants a place onstage.
\nWhile the billionaire dominates the field, polling well above his opponents, some allies worry that a no-show could give his rivals a chance to create a viral moment and gain momentum.
\nShortly after learning of his third indictment, Trump had dinner at his New Jersey golf club with Fox News executives who reportedly suggested that DeSantis would steal the show in his absence.
\nOther Washington watchers point out that Trump lost Iowa to Texas senator Ted Cruz in 2016 after skipping a debate.
\nKeen to take the wind out of his rivals\u2019 sails, Trump called a news conference for Monday to release a 100-page report he said would bolster his false assertions of voter fraud in 2020 \u2014 but then canceled on the advice of his lawyers.
\nHe is said to be mulling \u201ccounterprogramming\u201d in addition to the Carlson interview, and may choose Wednesday or Thursday to surrender to the county jail in Atlanta.
\nHe was indicted in the Georgia state capitol last week over an alleged conspiracy to steal the 2020 election and ordered to turn himself in by noon on Friday.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile the pro-DeSantis super PAC Never Back Down offered a window into the debate strategy that may be adopted by the governor, who is looking for a jolt to reverse slipping poll numbers.
\nIn a two-page memo posted online, it encouraged him to blast President Joe Biden, defend Trump from attacks by Christie and call surging political newcomer Ramaswamy \u201cfake.\u201d
\n\u201cIf you look at how this field develops, clearly, I\u2019m the only guy that Trump\u2019s campaign attacks, basically,\u201d DeSantis told Fox News Radio on Wednesday.
\n\u201cAnd then the other candidates, a lot of them don\u2019t really say much about Donald Trump, and they focus more on me. So we\u2019re going to be ready for all of that.\u201d
\nCandidates been informed they have to pledge to \u201chonor the will of the primary voters\u201d and support the eventual nominee as a condition of taking part \u2014 although it is unclear how such a commitment could be enforced.
\nTrump has said he won\u2019t sign, while Christie said he\u2019d sign but would treat it \u201cas seriously as Donald Trump took it in 2016.\u201d
\nTrump has been more definitive in his intention to skip the second debate in California on September 27, after making clear he dislikes its host, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON: All eyes are on Donald Trump as the Republican White House hopefuls prepare to do battle in the first debate of the 2024 race on Wednesday \u2014 with the main attraction threatening not to show up. Five months ahead of the start of primary elections to choose the party\u2019s flagbearer, the runaway frontrunner\u2019s grassroots […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":350337,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-350333","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n