Ron Paul has rejected an invitation to participate in an upcoming GOP debate moderated by Donald Trump claiming it would be “beneath the office of the Presidency,” “wildly inappropriate,” and “circus-like.”
On Saturday the Paul campaign released a statement rejecting the invitation to the NewsMax Media sponsored GOP debate scheduled for December 27.
Many find Trump, a controversial and flamboyant businessman and reality TV star, a curious choice to moderate a debate between Republican presidential hopefuls; many find Trump lacking in the gravitas and temperament to successfully serve as debate moderator. Apparently Paul and his campaign share this sentiment.
The following is a statement from Jesse Benton, Ron Paul's national campaign chairman:
“The selection of a reality television personality to host a presidential debate that voters nationwide will be watching is beneath the office of the Presidency and flies in the face of that office’s history and dignity. Mr. Trump’s participation as moderator will distract from questions and answers concerning important issues such as the national economy, crushing federal government debt, the role of the federal government, foreign policy, and the like. To be sure, Mr. Trump’s participation will contribute to an unwanted circus-like atmosphere.“Mr. Trump’s selection is also wildly inappropriate because of his record of toying with the serious decision of whether to compete for our nation’s highest office, a decision he appeared to make frivolously. The short-lived elevation of Mr. Trump’s stature as a candidate put him on the radar of many organizations and we recall that last spring he was invited to keynote the Republican Party of Iowa’s annual Lincoln Day Dinner, yet at the last minute he left RPI holding the bag by canceling. In turn, RPI canceled its biggest fundraising gala of the year and suffered embarrassment and in addition RPI was required to engage in refunding measures. Our candidate will not even consider participating in the late-December debate until Mr. Trump publicly apologizes to Iowa party leaders and rectifies in full the situation.“Therefore our candidate Ron Paul, the champion of the Constitution, has advised he will not attend.”
Trump fired back in a statement. It reads in part:
As I said in the past and will reiterate again, Ron Paul has a zero chance of winning either the nomination or the Presidency ... Few people take Ron Paul seriously and many of his views and presentations make him a clown-like candidate.
And so Paul claims Trump is a clown, while Trump claims Paul is a clown. Perhaps both are right. What do you think?
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