Former President Donald Trump remains coy on whether he’ll be in the first GOP presidential debate, suggesting he’s so far ahead of his rivals in the polls that it makes no sense for him to participate.
Asked in an interview that aired Sunday about his plans for the August debate, the former president rattled off poll numbers showing he’s in command of the field.
“Why would you be doing a debate? It’s actually not fair,” Trump said on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.” “Why would you let somebody that’s at 0 (percent) or 1 or 2 or 3 be popping you with questions?”
More than half of likely GOP voters back Trump, according to a RealClearPolitics aggregate of recent polls, with the next closest candidate, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, drawing support from about 20%.
For months, Trump, who’s facing unprecedented criminal prosecutions in New York and Florida, has voiced disdain at joining the first presidential debate.
“I see that everybody is talking about the Republican debates, but nobody got my approval, or the approval of the Trump Campaign, before announcing them,” he stated in April.
But former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who previously advised Trump and is now seeking the Republican presidential nomination himself, believes Trump just won’t be able to keep himself away from the debate stage.
“His ego, I think, will not permit him to have a big TV show that he’s not on,” Christie said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”
“And I think he’d be enormously frustrated sitting back in Bedminster (N.J.) and watching what I’m going to do to him on that stage in absentia,” he boasted.
While many Republican presidential contenders have tried to walk a fine line between criticizing Trump and acknowledging his popularity among the GOP base, Christie has repeatedly blasted the 45th president since he launched his own campaign last month.
“Come on, Donald, get on the stage and defend your record,” said the ex-governor. “You know, if you want to be the nominee, you need to defend your record.”
During the Trump interview that aired Sunday, he said he might pick his next running mate from among his current rivals.
Asked about Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina specifically, Trump had positive remarks.
“I could see Tim doing something with the administration, but he’s in right now campaigning,” he said. “But Tim is a talented guy, and you have other very talented people.”
The ex-president also adopted one of his favorite stances — bashing former underlings.
“The mistake would be people,” he said when asked about his biggest error from his time in office.
Trump went on to repeat bitter denunciations of “weak and pathetic” former Attorney General William Barr and “incompetent” ex-Defense Secretary Mark Esper, along with former AG Jeff Sessions.
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