Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday took a subtle dig at former President Donald Trump over his decision to skip the first GOP presidential primary debate.
Appearing at The Gathering, an annual conference for Christians, the GOP presidential candidate was specifically asked about Trump by interviewer Erick Erickson.
“You were about the first candidate to make the debate stage for next week in Milwaukee. And I guess the media would love to see the former president there with the rest of you. It doesn’t seem like it’s going to happen. How do you see the lay of the debate stage for next week?” Erickson asked.
Instead of taking the bait and hitting out directly at Trump, the Florida governor replied with a more generalized statement about “everyone” who’s eligible to attend the debate.
“I think everyone should debate if you qualify. I think you owe it to the people to put out your vision, to talk about your record, answer questions about your record and decisions that you may have made or not made,” he said.
“If you’re not willing to do that, then I think that people are not going to look kindly on that,” he added.
Listen:
The subtle dig at Trump was taken on the same day that The New York Times confirmed that the former president plans to skip the first debate and, instead, sit down with conservative commentator Tucker Carlson for an interview.
The dig likewise came a day after Trump published a Truth Social post indicating that he indeed would not be attending the debate.
“As everyone is aware, my Poll numbers, over a ‘wonderful’ field of Republican candidates, are extraordinary. In fact, I am leading the runner up, whoever that may now be, by more than 50 Points. Reagan didn’t do it, and neither did others. People know my Record, one of the BEST EVER, so why would I Debate? I’M YOUR MAN,” he wrote.
‘Tucker for the win’: Trump sticks it to Fox with final decision on first presidential debatehttps://t.co/rABVk8jVlw
— American Wire News (@americanwire_) August 18, 2023
Trump’s decision comes despite Fox News executives and hosts having spent months trying to convince him to attend the debate that they’ll be hosting. The latest meeting reportedly occurred earlier this month at Trump’s private club in New Jersey.
“The Republican front-runner was having dinner with a Fox News contributor and columnist, Charlie Hurt, when a call came in from another member of the Fox team. The man on the other end of the line, Mr. Trump was delighted to show his guests, was Bret Baier, one of the two moderators of the first Republican debate on Wednesday,” the Times reported Saturday, citing anonymous sources.
“It was Mr. Trump’s second Fox dinner that week. The night before, he had hosted the Fox News president, Jay Wallace, and the network’s chief executive, Suzanne Scott, who had gone to Bedminster, N.J., hoping to persuade Mr. Trump to attend the debate. Mr. Baier was calling to get a feel for the former president’s latest thinking,” the Times added.
Why has he remained so adamant about not attending the debate? Allegedly because of fears of prison: “He doesn’t want to risk his giant lead in a Republican race that some close to him believe he must win to stay out of prison.”
But critics for their part believe that he’s simply too “scared” to debate his challengers, including DeSantis (*Language warning):
Trump is too frightened.
— audiotransit (@paulrepublius) August 19, 2023
Fucking trump is a pussy https://t.co/BkpSTuinfE
— Guitar Man Rick (@RickAmericus) August 19, 2023
This shows how scared Trump is. What a wimp!
— Al (@Al42575792) August 19, 2023
Don Trump is too scared to debate. The world knows it. He isn’t fooling anyone with his fake bravado. His arrest is humiliating for the American people.
— LuLu (@LuluElvis) August 19, 2023
BREAKING: Donald Trump will skip the Republican debate next week for an “interview” with Kremlin propagandist Tucker Carlson.
Donald Trump is a coward. pic.twitter.com/dG5WNRWJIQ
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) August 18, 2023
His critics include fellow presidential candidate Chris Christie, who on Friday slammed Trump directly with a tweet.
“Surprise, surprise…the guy who is out on bail from four jurisdictions and can’t defend his reprehensible conduct, is running scared and hiding from the debate stage. Trump — certified loser, verified coward,” the former New Jersey governor wrote.
Surprise, surprise… the guy who is out on bail from four jurisdictions and can’t defend his reprehensible conduct, is running scared and hiding from the debate stage.
Trump – certified loser, verified coward. https://t.co/plGjaBngVP
— Chris Christie (@GovChristie) August 18, 2023
If Christie’s goal was to prod Trump into changing his mind, it didn’t work …
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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