Stage Set For Another GOP Debate
The Republican National Committee (RNC) has finalized the participant list for the highly anticipated fourth GOP presidential primary debate to be held Wednesday evening in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
RNC Chair Ronna Romney McDaniel said this week: “The fourth debate is another fantastic opportunity for our Republican candidates to share our winning agenda with the American people.”
The debate stage continues to shrink as the qualification criteria to participate tighten. Florida Gov Ron DeSantis, former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie have made the cut for Wednesday’s event.
Late reports surfacing this week have indicated the possibility of a surprise appearance by President Donald Trump, who has skipped the first three primary debates. Former Trump White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney told Sky News this week, “There’s been some reports that the Trump campaign team reached out to the organizers to ask a bunch of logistical questions.”
As has been the case throughout the year, the latest polling shows President Donald Trump maintains a significant lead over his rivals in the GOP primary race. Trump holds a lead of around 50 percentage points over distant second-place candidate Haley. DeSantis remains very close to Haley in the race for runner-up. Trump’s lead is consistent nationwide as well in early-voting states like Iowa and New Hampshire.
Haley is relying on a strategy of hanging on to second place until the South Carolina primary, where she believes she could pull off a miracle upset in her home state. However, Trump is ahead of her by 30 points there, according to RealClearPolitics aggregate polling data.
The RNC’s qualification standards focus on polling numbers and specific donor thresholds. Predictably, the rules are not favored by candidates who do not make the cut, including North Dakota Gov. Doug Bergum. “These arbitrary criteria ensure advantages for candidates from major media markets on the coasts versus America’s Heartland,” he said this week.
NewsNation and three conservative media outlets will host Wednesday’s debate: The Washington Free Beacon, “The Megyn Kelly Show” on Sirius XM and the streaming platform Rumble. Kelly will be moderating along with Free Beacon editor-in-chief Eliana Johnson and NewsNation anchor Elizabeth Vargas.
The debate begins Wednesday at 8 p.m. and will air live on the NewsNation cable channel and the NewsNation website and mobile app.
