Greater media attention has been directed toward Trump as a potential no-show rather than the other six candidates who appear to have achieved the fund raising and poll support criteria to qualify. As conventional wisdom strategy, it makes sense, unlikely to undermine his base of support while portraying the debate as a group discussion of also-rans. Executives at Fox News Channel, the debate hosts, surely must send up a prayer each morning that Trump will participate, understanding that his absence will seriously diminish interest and whatever credit the network receives for hosting the first debate of the 2024 campaign season will slip quietly into irrelevancy. If Trump shows up, the debate moderator might want to replace his welcoming remarks to "Gentlemen, start your engines." Carl Golden is a senior contributing analyst with the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University in New Jersey.

Source: Fox News July 24, 2023 05:03 UTC