Fox News has responded to Donald Trump after his decision to boycott the final Republican debate on January 28.
The network said in a statement that Donald Trump’s decision is “unprecedented” and accused him of “terrorizing” debate host Megyn Kelly.
Donald Trump clashed with Megyn Kelly at a Fox News debate in 2015 and had demanded she be removed from today’s panel.
The billionaire’s decision to pull out has been mocked by his Republican rivals.
The debate is the final one before the first real test of the election campaign, the Iowa caucus on February 1 when voters in the state pick their presidential nominee.
“Capitulating to politicians’ ultimatums about a debate moderator violates all journalistic standards, as do threats,” the Fox News network said in a statement.
“We’re not sure how Iowans are going to feel about him walking away from them at the last minute, but it should be clear to the American public by now that this is rooted in one thing – Megyn Kelly.”
It added: “We can’t give in to terrorizations toward any of our employees.”
Megyn Kelly accused Donald Trump of misogyny in the first debate in August 2015 and he responded the next day by accusing her of having blood “coming out of everywhere”. He denied he was referring to menstruation.
Donald Trump, who leads the Republican field, quit the debate on January 28 after Fox put out a sarcastic statement that questioned his ability to deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Fox responded by accusing Donald Trump of “viciously attacking” Megyn Kelly, threatening her and spending four days trying to get her removed.
Republican presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz mocked Donald Trump for his announcement.
Ted Cruz challenged Donald Trump to a one-on-one debate and taunted him on Twitter using the hashtag #DuckingDonald.
Donald Trump has attacked Ted Cruz over his birth in Canada in the latest Republican debate for White House hopefuls.
The Republican front-runner said Texas Senator Ted Cruz’s birth in Canada raised questions about his presidential eligibility: “There’s a big question mark over your head.”
The constitution mandates the president be a “natural born citizen” of the US.
Issues of national security, the economy and foreign policy have also played heavily in the debate.
In the polls, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are leading the five other candidates who were also on the stage in North Charleston.
The debate came just two weeks before the first real test of the campaign, when voters in Iowa pick their Republican and Democratic choices for president.
The event hosted by Fox Business Network came after days of Ted Cruz and Donald Trump taking shots at each other, shattering a months-long period of goodwill between the two men.
The start of hostilities began a week ago when the billionaire businessman started raising questions about whether the Texas senator’s birth in Canada put his eligibility in doubt.
Photo Reuters
However, on the debate stage on January 14, Ted Cruz said there was “zero chance” of a lawsuit succeeding, because the constitution’s definition of “natural born citizens” included people born to an American parent.
Ted Cruz was born in Calgary to an American mother and a Cuban father.
Donald Trump stood firm, noting that a Harvard law scholar had raised doubts and Ted Cruz could face lawsuits by Democrats wishing to challenge his qualification.
They also argued over the meaning of “New York values”, which Ted Cruz threw at the New York billionaire as a slur on his conservative credentials.
Donald Trump said that was an insult to the “great people” who pulled together after the 9/11 attacks.
After the debate, Donald Trump told reporters: “I guess the bromance is over.”
All the candidates targeted leading Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who was repeatedly attacked for her time as Secretary of State.
The primary contests, in which each party picks their nominee for president, begin in February and the presidential election is in November.
Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz has made individual liberty the key theme of his presidential campaign announcement.
Speaking at Liberty University in Virginia, Ted Cruz is one of several Republican hopefuls to emerge from the Tea Party movement.
He described his mission as “reigniting the promise of America” because “for so many Americans the promise of America seems more and more distant”.
Ted Cruz, 44, is the first high-profile Republican to officially enter the 2016 race.
He urged millions of “courageous conservatives” to rise up and he called on Americans to come together to say: “We demand our liberty.”
The speech followed a middle-of-the-night campaign announcement on Twitter.
Making an appeal to cultural conservatives and religious Republicans, he said: “Our rights don’t come from man but from God Almighty.”
Photo AP
Ted Cruz talked the crowd through his childhood and religious faith before moving on to lay out his political agenda.
He detailed his parents’ journey from Cuba in 1957 and discussed his early childhood in Canada – where he was born – after his father abandoned him and his mother.
Ted Cruz’s father, now an evangelical preacher, moved to the United States and developed a deep Christian faith before returning to his family and moving them to the US.
He spoke on the Senate floor for over 21 hours in a marathon speech that contributed to the 2013 government shutdown and was aimed at encouraging his fellow lawmakers to repeal the president’s healthcare reform, nicknamed ObamaCare.
The speech included a reading of Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs and Ham to his daughters, who were said to be watching their father on television.
He later joked that the event featured hours of his “favorite sound” – his own voice.
Before entering politics, Ted Cruz worked as a high-profile lawyer representing the State of Texas before the Supreme Court. He also taught law in Texas.
In the George W. Bush administration, Ted Cruz worked for the Federal Trade Commission and as an associate deputy attorney general at the Justice Department.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz has confirmed his bid for the US presidency, becoming the first Republican to declare his campaign for the White House 2016.
The Republican tweeted: “I’m running for President and I hope to earn your support.”
Ted Cruz, 44, is to set out his plans in detail in a speech at Liberty University in Virginia on March 23.
In a video posted on Twitter, Ted Cruz says: “It is going to take a new generation of courageous conservatives to make America great again.”
Commentators say Ted Cruz, a Tea Party favorite, splits Republican opinion.
Several White House hopefuls are expected to announce their bids for the presidency in the coming weeks.
Ted Cruz may go up against the likes of Jeb Bush, an early Republican frontrunner, and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who are yet to formally declare their candidacy.
Republican Senators Rand Paul and Marco Rubio have also hinted at their own White House interests.
Meanwhile, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is widely expected to be among those standing for the Democratic Party nomination.
Ted Cruz is a leading conservative who was elected to the US Senate in 2012.
In September 2013, the firebrand politician gave a 21-hour speech against President Barack Obama’s health law – one of the longest speeches in Senate history.
Ted Cruz’s eligibility to run for the White House was thrown into doubt after it emerged he was born in Canada, and he was forced to formally give up his dual citizenship last year.
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