Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel stressed the importance of attending the Republican primary debates on Thursday, especially as it pertains to getting President Joe Biden to debate his Republican opponent in the general election.
McDaniel, when asked on Fox News’s Fox and Friends about former President Donald Trump not attending the debate on Wednesday, said that while she understands the campaign’s strategy, she believes it is important he show up to future debates.
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“I understand the strategy his campaign is putting forward. They’re saying, you know, we’re up so much, why should we risk being on the debate stage,” McDaniel said.
“I do want to see him on the debate stage. I have said this a lot,” she added. “I don’t think it’s just about the primary. If he does end up being the nominee, we need [to] make sure Biden gets on the debate stage, and we also take this time to get in front of independent voters and the American people to contrast what our party stands for versus what Biden is doing.”
Trump opted to skip the first debate, citing his high poll numbers against his Republican primary opponents. The former president has a 40-point lead nationally over the Republican primary field, according to the RealClearPolitics polling average.
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The debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday was highlighted by a strong performance by former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and bruising attacks on entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.
The next Republican debate will be on Sept. 27 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, and will be televised by Fox Business and Univision. To qualify for this debate, GOP hopefuls will have to reach 3% in two different national polls or 3% in one national poll along with 3% in two polls from different early primary or caucus states. In addition to the polling requirements, candidates will need to have 50,000 unique donors.
