No one can do it better than Mr. Donald J. Trump.
For the past eight months, he is the story.
No matter what he says or what he does, the business mogul knows how to make it all about him.
And the media play his game.
That’s power.
He created the game, its rules, and then decides whether or not he feels like being a participant in that game.
On Tuesday night, Mr. Trump announced at a rally in Iowa that he was skipping tonight’s debate because of Fox News’ press release/satire statement in response to him threatening to be a no-show if moderator Megyn Kelly once again assumes moderator duties.
Back at the first GOP debate last August in Cleveland, Ms. Kelly asked Mr. Trump some outrageous questions about his treatment of women that drew strong ire from the frontrunner in post-debate spin and several days afterward.
With just days before the February 1st Iowa caucuses, Trump and his campaign didn’t feel he would be treated fairly during the debate and pulled out.
He surely knows how to take the focus off of the other candidates and place it firmly on him.
The media of course, have no choice but to cover his every move and every word because he is a ratings bonanza.
Instead of debating Senator Ted Cruz over records and past policy positions, or being asked possible questions that he feels are uncalled for from the moderators, Mr. Trump will instead host a rally for wounded veterans at the same time and only three miles away from the debate stage at Drake University.
Although Mr. Trump will be attacked without a chance to defend, there is no doubt that his absence will cast a shadow over the stage consisting of seven other men who probably wish he had never entered this presidential race in the first place.
That’s power.
As we do each and every debate, we ask the candidates a question. Without further interruption…
Donald Trump – Any chance you change your mind and show up tonight on stage? No? Well, we won’t be surprised if you do show up because Fox needs you there!
Ted Cruz – Senator, with Donald Trump missing from the stage (though there is still time for him to change his mind), will you take advantage of his absence and assume frontrunner status by making the case to the Iowa voters that you are truly the consistent conservative that is ready to be president on Day 1?
Marco Rubio – Currently sitting in third place in Iowa, far behind Trump and Cruz, but ahead of your establishment contenders Bush and Christie, are you the grassroots conservative of 2010 or the establishment’s favorite darling of 2013 (Gang of Eight)?
Ben Carson – With the polls following Iowa not in your favor, will you drop out late Monday night should you fail to finish higher than 3rd place in Iowa?
Chris Christie – You have called on New Jersey to take over Atlantic City’s finances. Is this yet another example of your feckless leadership as governor in the Garden State?
Jeb Bush –A recent poll out of New Hampshire has you coming in 2nd place, but far behind Mr. Trump. Should you fail to place higher than 4th in either Iowa or New Hampshire, is there really any reason for you to continue on?
John Kasich – Rising in the polls in New Hampshire and picking up key newspaper endorsements from The Boston Globe and The Concord Monitor, who backed very liberal Republican Jon Huntsman, Jr. just four years ago by the way, how do you win the nomination without the conservative base should you somehow win or place high in the Granite State?
Rand Paul – Welcome back senator. With Mr. Trump missing-in-action, which you said will make tonight the “best debate” yet, will you go after your senate colleagues Cruz and Rubio as a way to pick off their supporters and show the Iowa caucus goers that you are the only true conservative on the dais?
There will be more debates after tonight.
But will this be the last time we see Jeb Bush or Rand Paul standing on stage amongst the leading candidates?
Will undercard debate participants Carly Fiorina, Mike Huckabee, and Rick Santorum drop out after likely poor showings in Iowa?
Will Donald Trump’s rabid supporters actually show up to caucus on Monday night?
Can Ted Cruz, who said if Trump wins Iowa that he will likely win the nomination, be victorious in the first in the nation caucuses and prove that he is the one who can stop the Trump train?
Those questions will be answered in due time.
We don’t care who might not be eligible to run for president, who took out campaign loans from banks, who bought an expensive boat, who hit a classmate with a lock, who doesn’t talk politically correct, or who may or may not be afraid of Megyn Kelly.
What we the people, as conservatives who crave real leadership in Washington D.C. do care about is, who on the stage (or obviously missing from the debate) tonight will restore our great constitutional republic?
Who will uphold and follow the U.S. Constitution?
Which candidate will rebuild our military and take care of our veterans after they have bravely defended our nation?
Which candidate will defend religious liberty?
Who will protect the unborn?
Who will vigorously defend 2nd Amendment rights?
Which man or woman will secure our borders by building a wall, enforcing our current immigration laws, and will oppose amnesty every step of the way?
Who will get rid of Obamacare and offer real solutions to provide the best health care in the world to every American?
Who will empower the states and the local school districts to make the decisions to best provide the tools and resources for our children’s education and get rid of federal government mandates like CommonCore?
Who will tear up every executive order issued by President Obama on Day 1?
Who will cut taxes for individuals and businesses, small and large, and unleash our free market economy which will bring prosperity to all Americans?
Who will cut spending and begin the process of eliminating our $18 trillion debt?
Which conservative candidate on stage will lead the greatest country on earth to defeat radical Islamic terrorists, both at home and abroad?
Conservative First and millions of grassroots conservatives will stand with that individual who says unequivocally “I will!!” to those questions.
Tonight’s debate in Des Moines, Iowa offers up another opportunity for the voters to decide which candidate will stand with us to “reignite the promise of America”, “to make our country great again”, get us ready for “a new American century”, or “heal, inspire, revive” just days before the first ballots are cast in this presidential cycle. A presidential cycle that is unlike any that we have seen before.
After all, we are witnessing something truly amazing.
On one side, we have a 74 year-old proud and self-proclaimed socialist drawing record crowds, and on the other side, a candidate who is being begged to show up at a debate to give big ratings and high-dollar advertising rates to a network that plays his game.
Everyone in the media and elsewhere will be watching, listening, and talking about whether Donald Trump will indeed show up at the last second (maybe even halfway through??) or proceed with his plan to host that rally for wounded veterans.
If he doesn’t show up, it will continue to be non-stop news coverage of why he didn’t. If he does show up, again, non-stop coverage of why he had a change of heart.
That’s power.
And that’s Donald Trump, the man who forces others to play the game he created.
