Moderators preparing GOP debate scenarios both with and without Trump

The two moderators for the first Republican presidential primary debate next week say they are planning scenarios for both if former President Trump decides to attend or if he doesn’t, as the GOP front-runner has not yet revealed his plans. 

Fox News moderators Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum told Politico in an interview that they will have questions prepared for every candidate, including Trump, and that he will still play a significant role in the debate even if he is not physically present. 

“If he’s not there, he’ll still be there,” Baier said. “In other words, he’ll be a part of questioning. There may be sound bites, there may be elements where ‘this is what the leader of the primary says about this issue.’ He’ll be there, even if he’s not there.” 

Baier said the discussion will be focused around topics that will not majorly change if Trump attends or not, but some of the interactions between the candidates could change based on the former president’s decision. 

Trump has indicated that he would announce this week whether he would attend the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) first debate in Milwaukee, which will be the site of the Republican convention next summer. 

He has hinted for months that he might skip at least the first debate, questioning why he would engage with the other candidates given his large lead in the GOP primary polls. He has also bashed Fox as a “hostile” network to him. 

Trump has refused to sign the loyalty pledge to back the party’s eventual nominee that the RNC is requiring all candidates to commit to. His decision could put the RNC in a difficult situation with the party’s front-runner not agreeing to cooperate with their rules, especially if he decides he wants to attend the debate. 

Other than Trump, the candidates who have met the RNC’s polling and fundraising requirements to qualify for the debate are Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.), former Vice President Mike Pence, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. 

No other candidate who otherwise qualified has indicated that they would not sign the pledge — most of them have already done so. 

MacCallum said she and Baier do not expect any additional candidates to qualify for the debate, but “there’s still time for that to change.” 

She said Trump “absolutely” should take part in the debate, and every voter she has spoken to said they want him to attend. 

“They want the opportunity to vet all of these candidates equally and to watch them answer these questions,” MacCallum said.