White House spokesperson Olivia Dalton said Monday she hopes President Joe Biden does not watch the 2024 Republican primary debate airing Wednesday.
The first debate is set to be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where Fox News’ Martha MacCallum and Bret Baier will serve as moderators. Former President Donald Trump announced he will be skipping at least the first upcoming debate in a Truth Social post Sunday.
A reporter asked Dalton during the Air Force One press gaggle whether Biden intends to watch the debate.
“I don’t know, I sure hope not,” Dalton answered, causing laughter. “I hope for his sake. So, but I don’t know, actually.”
At least nine of the Republican candidates have reached the number of donors to qualify for the debate. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and business entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy are expected to participate. (RELATED: Pence Hints He’ll Attack Trump, DeSantis During Debate For Going Soft On Abortion)
The former president’s biggest campaign rival, DeSantis, has repeatedly called on Trump to participate in the debate.
“I think we’ll do well either way, but I think he owes it to people to participate,” DeSantis said during a July 20 interview with Fox News. “Nobody is entitled to be nominated, you got to earn it. You’ve got to earn everything in this world, so I think you show up, I think you participate, I think you make your case, and I think you answer questions. So we’re gonna be doing that regardless of who shows up, but yeah, I think he ought to participate.”
Republican consultants and analysts told the Daily Caller News Foundation it is not in Trump’s “interest” to participate in the debate, arguing he will dominate the news cycle regardless.