Fox News announced that it will host two live town halls with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. The two town halls were announced the day after Fox announced it would be hosting a live town hall for former President Donald Trump.
The former President will not have the questions in advance or
any knowledge of the questions from me, Martha or from citizens in the crowd – who will be a mix of Iowa voters. And I can confirm that I approached the Trump campaign about doing a town hall in Iowa. They had turned… https://t.co/36Hwm9NtZe— Bret Baier (@BretBaier) January 2, 2024
Trump’s town hall was announced on Tuesday and will take place on January 10, the same day and the same time as the fifth GOP primary debate.
With the GOP primary heating up, only three presidential candidates qualified to participate including Trump, DeSantis and Haley. Trump has already declined his invitation just like he has for the previous four debates. This is, however, the first time he will be competing directly with the debate on television.
Haley’s town hall will be on January 8 and DeSantis’ will be on January 9 with both events beginning at 6 p.m. The two town halls will focus on women’s issues.
One of the hot-button topics expected to be discussed at Haley’s and DeSantis’ town halls is the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the issue of abortion. Since the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to give the power back to the states, this topic has become one of the most important political issues in America.
In contrast, according to Fox News, Trump’s town hall will “focus on the leading issues facing voters ahead of the Iowa Caucus.”
Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum will moderate all three town halls, and Baier has made it clear that Trump will not have access to the questions before the event.
After Fox announced that the Trump town hall would take place during the GOP primary debate, the news organization faced backlash from critics who claimed Fox gave Trump an excuse to opt out of the debate even as the Iowa caucus draws near.
Even after scheduling the two additional town halls for the two other primary GOP contenders, it is Trump who will benefit the most from the scenario that is laid out.
Trump’s town hall is a prime-time event that starts at 9 p.m. and is in direct competition with a debate between his two chief rivals. The town hall is also broader in nature than that of DeSantis’ or Haley’s and essentially gives Trump the ability to debate himself without having to worry about competitors stealing the attention.
Trump is still almost 50 points ahead of Haley and DeSantis in almost every national poll and it will be difficult for either to catch Trump even in the best circumstances.
