The US Republican presidential debate scheduled for next week in Utah has been cancelled, host Fox News said on Wednesday. The announcement comes after Republican party front-runner Donald Trump told the network that he would not participate.
Trump, who has clashed with Fox News throughout his campaign, told the network in an interview on Wednesday he would not appear at the event, scheduled for Monday because he thought the Republicans had “had enough debates.”
Ohio Governor John Kasich said afterward he would also skip the debate unless Trump changed his mind and decided to come.
US Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, the third remaining Republican candidate for the party’s nomination for the November 8 presidential election, criticised Trump on Twitter, calling him #DuckingDonald and urging his supporters to tell Trump to attend.
Fox News had earlier this week announced the debate, to be held in Salt Lake City, its latest in the primary season. Utah holds its presidential primary next Tuesday.
Ted Cruz has expressed a willingness to debate Trump or Kasich – or both. But obviously, there needs to be more than one participant. So the Salt Lake City debate is cancelled.Michael Clemente, Executive Vice President, Fox News
After the cancellation, Trump posted on Twitter that he would be making a “big speech” the night of the debate.
The brash New York billionaire skipped a Fox News debate in Iowa in January after complaining he had been mistreated by the network. He has long clashed with anchor Megyn Kelly and revived criticism of her on Tuesday, saying on Twitter she was “crazy” and “unwatchable.”
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)