Only time will tell if skipping the Faux News debate actually hurts Trump in Iowa, but for today at least it seems like a very smart move from a guy that may be cagier than people think.
–For the last 48 hours, all the media has talked about is him skipping the debate.
–During the Undercard debate, all the other candidates talked about was him skipping the debate.
–Probably during the real debate, they’ll bring it up at least a dozen times.
–It makes a clear case to voters that Faux News isn’t pulling for him, and probably would have just tried to hurt him during the debate.
–He was even savvy enough to pretend to care about Veterans during the same time.
When he says “I thought raising awareness to the Veterans is a better use of my time” he’s probably right. It showcases the farce these “debates” have become, and how Faux in particular seems content to just blow kisses at Jeb, Ted, or Rubio. This is probably the best way he could have showed favoritism.
And people are saying “but it highlights how petty Trump is” but I’m guessing his “fans” already know that. Any way you slice it, it just once again showcases that the other candidates and Faux are playing on his terms. Other candidates routinely criticize the “media”–it’s all they did in the undercard debate–but Trump is actually saying “fuck you, I’m not going” which is different.
No matter how split the reaction to his skipping the debate is, it’s a stark contrast to Rand Paul skipping last week’s debate when it seemed like nobody really cared and the reaction was universally pretty negative. In fact, Rand is only allowed on the mainstage tonight because Trump isn’t going to show up. People are saying “Trump just wants to take his ball and go home,” and that’s true, but there’s no doubt now that it truly is his ball.
Don’t we all wish we had Donald Trump’s gall or should I say balls.