In a recent development, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis criticized his presidential adversary Nikki Haley for her delayed acceptance of an invitation to a debate in Iowa.
DeSantis accused the former South Carolina governor of needing to be "shamed" into participation.
DeSantis, aged 45, was the first candidate to confirm his participation in the CNN debate scheduled for January 10 at Drake University in Des Moines. The debate's eligibility criteria, which requires candidates to have at least 10% in polling, will likely limit the participants to DeSantis, Haley, and the GOP front-runner, 77-year-old Donald Trump, should he choose to participate.
Haley, 51, remained noncommittal about the CNN debate after its official announcement on December 7. Her team refrained from commenting on her interest in attending. Even after the Republican National Committee lifted all debate restrictions on candidates the next day, Haley's camp remained silent, offering no statement on her potential participation.
On Thursday, Haley's spokesperson, Olivia Perez-Cubas, informed The Post that the former United Nations ambassador was considering several "options" for Iowa debates but was "not ready to share those details." At that time, CNN's January 10 debate was the only publicly announced forum in Iowa.
On Friday, Haley confirmed her participation in the CNN debate and urged Trump, who has so far avoided all RNC-sponsored debates, to also attend. "The first four debates have been great for our campaign and for voters, and we look forward to the fifth in Iowa," she stated. "As the debate stage continues to shrink, it's getting harder for Donald Trump to hide."
In response, DeSantis took to Twitter, suggesting that Haley had been "shamed" into attending the debate. "If Donald Trump and Nikki Haley are going to continue to spend millions against me on television with false attacks, they should at least have the courage to meet on the debate stage," he said. "Now that Nikki Haley has been shamed into coming to the CNN debate, it's time for Donald Trump to follow suit and join us," he added.
The former president has yet to indicate whether he will attend the Iowa debate. After the Iowa caucuses on January 15, the debates will move to New Hampshire. ABC and its Manchester, NH, affiliate, WMUR-TV, will host a debate on January 18, followed by another CNN debate on January 21. The New Hampshire Republican primary will take place on January 23. The RNC has stated that it will not sponsor any debates after the December 6 debate in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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