Thread: Trump refuses to reconsider debate in fiery Fox interview

January 27, 2016, 08:11 pm
By Jonathan Easley



Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Wednesday night lashed out at Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly in his first appearance on the network since he announced he’d boycott the next GOP debate.

He also refused to reconsider his decision to sit out the network’s Thursday night debate – the last before the Iowa caucuses in five days – and said he’d move forward with his own competing event to raise money for wounded veterans.

Speaking on “The O’Reilly Factor,” Trump continued his long-running feud with Kelly, who he has been criticizing ever since she challenged him on his past derogatory remarks about women at the first GOP debate in August.

“I have zero respect for Megyn Kelly,” Trump said. “I don’t think she’s good at what she does and I think she’s highly overrated. And frankly, she’s a moderator; I thought her question last time was ridiculous.”

Kelly is also set to moderate Thursday night’s debate on Fox News.

Trump is instead holding a rally in Des Moines at the same time as the Republican debate that he says will raise money for wounded veterans.

In the contentious interview with O’Reilly, Trump rebuffed the anchor’s attempts to convince him that he’s making a grave error by skipping the debate.

“I believe personally that you want to improve the country,” O’Reilly said. “By doing this, you miss the opportunity to convince others … that is true.

“You have in this debate format the upper hand — you have sixty seconds off the top to tell the moderator, ‘You’re a pinhead, you’re off the mark and here’s what I want to say’. By walking away from it, you lose the opportunity to persuade people you are a strong leader.”

But O’Reilly’s pitch fell flat with Trump. The GOP front-runner dug in his heels, insisting he intended to retaliate against the network by depriving them of ratings.

“Fox was going to make a fortune off this debate,” Trump said. “Now they’re going to make much less.”

O’Reilly said he was merely trying to convince Trump that his approach “is wrong because it’s better for people to see you in the debate format.”

He gave the example from 2012, when former Speaker Newt Gingrich was asked an embarrassing question by a CNN debate moderator at a South Carolina debate about allegations he had an open marriage.

Gingrich shut the moderator down and went on to win South Carolina, O’Reilly noted.

“That’s the kind of guy you are,” O’Reilly said. “You stick it to them and let them have it.”

Responded Trump: “Newt is a friend of mine and I thought it was an unfair question. But equally unfair was the question Megyn Kelly asked me.”

O’Reilly then sought to appeal to Trump’s capacity to forgive, reminding the billionaire businessman that he’s a Christian, even if he doesn’t attend church all that often, and that the Bible says to “turn the other cheek.”

Trump shot back, saying he’s a regular church-goer, and that the Bible also says “an eye for an eye.”

“You could look at it that way too,” Trump said.

O’Reilly accused Trump of being “petty,” and said he was allowing things that are out of his control to have outsized influence over his decision-making process.

“I don’t like being taken advantage of,” Trump said. “In this case I was being taken advantage of by Fox. I don’t like that. Now when I’m representing the country, if I win, I’m not going to let our country be taken advantage of. … It’s a personality trait but I don’t think it’s a bad personality trait.”

O’Reilly ended the interview asking Trump to just at least consider showing up Thursday night. Trump said the two had agreed beforehand that O’Reilly not ask that question.

“I told you up front don’t ask me that question because it’s an embarrassing question for you and I don’t want to embarrass you,” he said.

http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/...eilly-fox-news

Really I think this is great. Trump having his own event. So cool. Jack it up to a Whole New Level!

You can't soar with Eagles when you're surrounded by Turkeys -- Unknown

I watched this and was painful to watch the tactics used by O"Reilly. He even tried Christian guilt to coerce Trump into participating in the FOX news event.

After seeing this article from Michelle Malkin, it appears that stacking the deck against Trump specifically was the agenda of FOX News,Google and the GOP.

MALKIN: LOOK WHO GETS TO QUESTION THE GOP CANDIDATES TOMORROW

By: Michelle Malkin |
January 27th, 2016

Really, RNC? Really?

As I noted on Twitter this afternoon, the Fox News/Google GOP debate tomorrow will feature three YouTube “stars” who will have the special privilege of asking questions of the candidates.

Michelle MalkinVerified account‏@michellemalkin

A YouTube star named "Dulce Candy" will be asking questions at the FoxNews debate tomorrow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjPzcPJ-8hg …

Michelle MalkinVerified account‏@michellemalkin

FoxNews debate questioner Dulce Candy was an illegal immigrant. I'm sure her q will be fair.

11:01 AM - 27 Jan 2016

Dulce Candy entered the U.S. illegally from Mexico in 1994, as she shared in a YouTube video here:

<font color="#292F33"><span style="font-family: Arial"><font color="#8899A6">


Nabela Noor is an outspoken Muslim activist:

Michelle MalkinVerified account‏@michellemalkin

And here's background on another FoxNews debate questioner tomorrow - Nabela Noor: http://www.breitbart.com/2016-presidential-race/2016/01/26/2868743/ …

Google and Fox TV Invite Anti-Trump, Hitler-Citing, Muslim Advocate to Join Next GOP TV-Debateutube

by NEIL MUNRO26 Jan 20167,534
11:14 AM - 27 Jan 2016
http://www.breitbart.com/2016-presidential-race/2016/01/26/2868743/

These participants were apparently approved by the RNC, according to a YouTube flack who spoke with Neil Munro of Breitbart.com:

The two companies announced Tuesday afternoon that the anti-Trump Muslim advocate would be allowed to play a role in the debate.


Google is teaming up with the Fox News Channel for the final Republican debate in Iowa on Thursday, January 28, 2016, and integrating three new components into the debate to help people get informed before they head to the polls, including a way to hear directly from candidates on Google; real-time Google Trends data; and questions from three of YouTube’s most prominent voices—Nabela Noor, Mark Watson, and Dulce Candy — who will join the moderators in the debate to ask the candidates a question on an issue that matters to them and their communities.

The Republican National Committee also approved the choice of Noor, an L.A.-based press aide for YouTube, Jackie Cavanagh, at MPRM Communications, told Breitbart. “I believe” she was chosen by YouTube, with help from the RNC and Fox, she said.
“YouTube creators were selected in collaboration with Fox based on things such as audience size and their ability to bring a new, fresh perspective to the most important issues of our time. Fox informed the party/candidates of the format,” said a p.r. person.

Prediction: “New, fresh perspective” means liberal, open-borders, and grievance-mongering personal narratives to bash the GOP. As I’ve reported repeatedly over the years, the debates co-sponsored with Google have turned into bountiful gardens of political plants.

Michelle MalkinVerified account‏@michellemalkin

Michelle Malkin Retweeted The Hill
Shot: http://michellemalkin.com/2016/01/06/inside-the-garden-of-political-town-hall-plants/ …Chaser:
Michelle Malkin added,


The Hill @thehillIowa student: CNN told me to ask Clinton question at #DemTownHall http://hill.cm/wQF7Cbz

• RETWEETS93
• LIKES102

2:11 PM - 26 Jan 2016

It would be bad enough if the RNC and Fox knowingly approved agenda-driven YouTube questioners.

But what does it say about their competence if they cluelessly allowed the invitees to participate without properly vetting them in the first place?

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RACHEL‏@TheBeaSmith

RACHEL Retweeted Michelle Malkin

This is just, well, pandering by the RNC, and I find it offensive!
RACHEL added,
Michelle Malkin @michellemalkinAnd here's background on another FoxNews debate questioner tomorrow - Nabela Noor: http://www.breitbart.com/2016-presid...01/26/2868743/ …









See More Twitter responses at the link:

- See more at: https://www.conservativereview.com/c....7KZ389uT.dpuf

I believe it is much larger than just Kelly. She is just the most suitable fall guy. Trump has both the commentators and the candidates in a last chance opportunity (especially for most of the candidates) to rip him up or make him look foolish if they can. It is a typical move (protecting lead) that most frontrunners would make if they could. Now, even if they called Trumps' bluff (Kelly removing herself from debate), he is committed to another event.

O'Reilly looked so stressed out pandering.

It's been great so far on the news channels today. CNN is standing up for Trump all of a sudden claiming they understand why he was upset and in some ways attacking Kelly as being unprofessional making it about her when moderators are not supposed to be the story of a debate, the debate is supposed to be the story. MSNBC is raking Fox and even Kelly over the coals. Almost all their guests support Trump. The ones who don't are Bush people and on Morning Joe, they all just clobbered her. This is huge victory for Trump and our nation.

For years we all complain about the "media bias". Not just Fox but all of them. Well now we have a Presidential candidate who knows how to whack them when they're bad.

I thought Trump did great in that interview with Bill. He politely pointed out that Bill had lied to him to get him on the show. He politely said the reason, "don't ask me because I don't want to embarrass you", and today the other networks are calling Bill a beggar for Roger Ailes.

It's not often when a single person can put Murdoch, Ailes, Kelly and Fox News in their rightful place. Donald Trump did that in 2 days while doing everything else he does on a busy campaign schedule.

Trump would much rather spend his evening raising money for the Vets than listening to a bunch of weak losers try to sound like big tough winners, when they're neither one.

For those interested in the Trump Event, it's at 9 pm EST on CNN, One America and I think MSNBC. Maybe others, too. But these are the ones I've heard of so far.