U.S. Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump said on Monday he was "not 100 percent" certain he would participate in a debate this week co-hosted by Fox News Channel because he did not think moderator Megyn Kelly could treat him fairly.
Trump told CNN he would probably participate, but added: “I'm
not 100 percent; I'll see. If I think I'm going to be
treated unfairly,
I'll do something else. But I don't think she can treat me fairly,
actually, I think she's very biased. But that doesn't mean I don't do
the debate."
Trump added he had won every debate so far. "So
I want to do the debates, they're good for me, but I don't think she
can treat me fairly and I'm not a big fan of hers. Maybe I know too much
about her."
Thursday's debate, also
co-hosted by Google is the last one before the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses, the
first contest in the nomination race for the Nov. 8 presidential
election.
Later on Monday, Fox News responded to Trump's remarks in an emailed statement it attributed to a network spokesperson.
"Sooner
or later Donald Trump, even if he’s president, is going to have to
learn that he doesn’t get to pick the journalists - we’re very surprised
he’s willing to show that much fear about being questioned by Megyn
Kelly.”
Following a debate hosted by Fox News
last August, the real estate billionaire accused the network and Kelly
of asking him tougher questions than those asked of the other
candidates. Kelly responded that probing questions were part of her job.
Trump
also drew criticism at the time for comments that many people
interpreted as suggesting that Kelly was affected by hormones during the
debate.
Trump's blunt speaking style has boosted
ratings for the Republican presidential debates. The August debate on
Fox News drew 24 million viewers, a record for a presidential primary
debate and the highest non-sports telecast in cable TV history.
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