Ahead Of Wisconsin Primary, Donald Trump Threatens To Pull Out Of CNN Town Hall
The forthcoming Wisconsin primary could prove a turning point for Donald Trump and the Republican party, but the potential for a major gain – or major defeat – is not stopping the billionaire candidate from pulling some eleventh-hour shenanigans as part of another row with the media. Tuesday morning, Trump took to Twitter to air his grievances with CNN, accusing the network of being one-sided in their coverage of him.
“CNN has nothing but my opponents on their shows,” Trump tweeted. “Really one-sided and unfair reporting. Maybe I shouldn’t do their town-hall tonight!”
Wow, @CNN has nothing but my opponents on their shows. Really one-sided and unfair reporting. Maybe I shouldn’t do their town-hall tonight!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 29, 2016
Donald Trump, along with GOP rivals Ted Cruz and John Kasich, is scheduled to participate in a town hall forum on Tuesday night in Wisconsin. The event is hosted by CNN and provides all candidates an opportunity to directly address voters in the key primary state.
The above-noted tweet came just a short time after Katrina Pierson, one of Trump’s top spokespersons, was front and center on CNN’s New Day, engaging in a heated defense of her candidate with host Don Lemon. As noted by Mediaite, the main point of contention in the televised discussion was the Trump campaign’s recent swipes at Heidi Cruz, the wife of Donald Trump’s closest rival for the Republican nomination.
“There’s no such thing as an attack on Heidi Cruz!” said Pierson as she objected to Lemon’s line of questioning regarding the recent dust-up on social media. “No one has attacked Heidi Cruz. Melania Trump has been attacked. Where has that headline been on CNN?”
Don Lemon responded by asserting that Pierson’s claims were “disingenuous.”
The April 5 Republican primary will decide which Republican candidate receives the 42 delegates that are up for grabs. Quoted in an article by the International Business Times, Ted Cruz indicated that the contest is a major opportunity for the GOP to unite against Donald Trump.
“The results in Wisconsin will impact significantly the primaries to come,” Cruz said. “Wisconsin, I believe, will play a critical role continuing to unify Republicans behind our campaign. The only way to beat Donald Trump is with unity.”
As previously noted by the Inquisitr, the Wisconsin primary is also slated as the starting point of a 100-day campaign by the “Anybody But Trump” movement to prevent the billionaire from securing the Republican nomination this summer.
Skipping a major televised event on the eve of a critical primary is not entirely unprecedented for the Donald Trump campaign. Ahead of the Iowa primary, Donald Trump declined to attend a Fox News event due at least in part to his running feud with host Megyn Kelly and Fox News itself. Some pundits suggested that the move alienated some Iowa voters, ultimately leading to a win for Ted Cruz in that state.
Donald Trump also pulled out of a Fox News debate earlier this month, making his announcement during a live appearance on the network. Fox News was later forced to cancel the event when Ohio Governor John Kasich followed suit. Trump was unapologetic in his explanation for the swerve.
“I think we’ve had enough debates,” Donald Trump told the Fox News panel. “How many times can you answer the same question?”
CNN has not commented publicly regarding Trump’s above-noted tweet, and the CNN Town Hall event is expected to move forward with or without Donald Trump.
[Photo by George Frey/Getty Images]
