Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley are set to appear at next week’s Republican presidential debate on CNN, while former President Donald Trump participates in a Fox News town hall at the same time.
Quick Read
Republican Presidential Debate and Town Halls: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley are scheduled to participate in the upcoming Republican presidential debate hosted by CNN, set for 9 p.m. ET on Jan. 10 in Des Moines, Iowa. This event coincides with a Fox News town hall featuring former President Donald Trump, also at 9 p.m. ET.
Significance of the Events: Both the debate and the town hall are significant preludes to Iowa’s GOP voting contest, which is just five days later. The CNN debate, moderated by Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, focuses on DeSantis and Haley as primary competitors to Trump, who leads in most polls.
Exclusion of Other Candidates: Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who were present in earlier debates, did not meet the criteria to participate in the CNN debate. The eligibility required at least 10% support in specific polls.
Ramaswamy’s Alternative Plan: Vivek Ramaswamy criticized the upcoming debate as potentially “the most boring in modern history” and announced his plan to join a podcast hosted by Tim Pool instead.
Trump’s Strategy: Former President Trump has chosen not to participate in the debates, opting for alternative events like the upcoming Fox News town hall, interviews, and public appearances, to express his views and criticisms, especially against President Joe Biden.
Format of the Fox News Town Hall: The town hall featuring Trump will be moderated by Fox anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, replacing Sean Hannity’s usual time slot.
Criticism of Trump’s Non-Participation: Both DeSantis and Haley have criticized Trump for avoiding participation in the debates, urging him to face his rivals directly.
Additional Media Engagements: NBC News and The Des Moines Register plan to release a series of 30-minute digital interviews with DeSantis, Haley, and Ramaswamy. Trump and Christie have declined these interview requests.
CNN Town Hall Events: DeSantis and Haley are also slated for back-to-back town
The Associated Press has the story:
DeSantis & Haley will appear at next week’s CNN debate at the same time as Trump’s Fox town hall
Newslooks- NEW YORK (AP)
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley are set to appear at next week’s Republican presidential debate on CNN, while former President Donald Trump participates in a Fox News town hall at the same time.
Both events will be held at 9 p.m. ET on Jan. 10 in Des Moines, Iowa, just five days before the state’s first-in-the-nation GOP voting contest.
The CNN debate, to be moderated by Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, will be the first to focus solely on the two candidates vying to become Trump’s chief competition. The former president has been leading by wide margins in polls of likely Republican voters.
Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who participated in previous debates, did not qualify for the CNN event. Candidates needed to achieve 10% support in at least three specific polls of likely Republican voters or caucusgoers, at least one of them measuring voters just in Iowa.
In a post on X on Tuesday, Ramaswamy predicted that the DeSantis-Haley debate would be “the most boring in modern history” and said he would participate in a podcast hosted by Tim Pool instead.
Trump did not participate in any of the earlier debates, saying he didn’t want to lend credence to his lower-polling rivals. He has instead typically held competing events, including an interview with Tucker Carlson and traveling to Michigan to criticize President Joe Biden and his push for electric cars during an autoworkers’ strike.
His town hall next Wednesday will air in the time slot normally held by one of his top media supporters, Sean Hannity. But Hannity will be preempted that night, with Fox anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum instead moderating that session.
It was not immediately clear whether it was the Trump campaign or Fox News that initiated plans for the town hall. A CNN spokeswoman declined to comment on the counterprogramming.
DeSantis and Haley have both criticized Trump for not participating in the debates.
“With only three candidates qualifying, it’s time for Donald Trump to show up,” Haley said on Tuesday. “As the debate stage continues to shrink, it’s getting harder for Donald Trump to hide.”
Meanwhile, NBC News and The Des Moines Register said it would hold a series of 30-minute interviews with DeSantis, Haley and Ramaswamy that will posted digitally on Wednesday. Trump and Christie declined the interview requests, NBC said.
Haley and DeSantis will also appear in back-to-back town hall events on CNN this Thursday.
