As news is beginning to trickle forth about the Republican National Committee’s rules for the first GOP debate on Wednesday, among the details is one sure to anger fans of former President Donald Trump: his high-profile surrogates, including sitting members of Congress, will be denied campaign credentials preventing them from moving freely about the premises.
The Post Millennial caught a tweet by CNN’s Alayna Treene from late Monday which confirmed that the RNC “will no longer provide credentials to some Trump surrogates to attend the spin room given Trump is not planning on participating.”
Deleted a previous tweet to clarify my reporting:
Fox News, which is hosting the first GOP primary debate, informed the Trump campaign on Monday they will no longer provide credentials to some Trump surrogates to attend the spin room given Trump is not planning on participating— Alayna Treene (@alaynatreene) August 22, 2023
President Trump, who will be skipping the debate, has told advisors that he hoped for some of his surrogates like Florida Congressmen Byron Donalds (R-FL), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), and Nevada’s former gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake to represent him on the floor at the debate.
As President Trump’s high standing in the GOP primary has been cemented in poll after poll, Republican leaders have rushed by his side, going on cable news programs to defend his performances in everything from televised town halls to indictment perp walks. The former president made waves last month when he announced endorsements from the majority of Florida’s GOP congressional delegation, an embarrassing moment for its governor and Republican presidential candidate Ron Desantis.
By denying the 45th president an opportunity to have major representatives at the debate, the RNC has effectively turned its back on President Trump after he snubbed host network Fox News by announcing a competing sit-down interview with Tucker Carlson. The GOP’s leadership would have required Trump to sign a “loyalty pledge” promising to back the party’s eventual nominee, something he has rebuffed in response to criticism by Governor DeSantis, Chris Christie, and others in the field.
While viewership will certainly be lower without President Trump on stage, the event still promises to be a prime opportunity for DeSantis, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, and single-digit candidates to get their message out to millions. Polls have shown Ramaswamy beginning to eclipse Governor DeSantis for the number two position as the party’s leading alternative to President Trump should he somehow have the unfortunate luck of dropping out or falling in the poll due to his ongoing legal sagas.
