Donald Trump Refuses To Participate In Iowa Gov’s ‘Fair-Side Chats’ Because She ‘Shirked Her Commitment’ To Stay Neutral
Republican frontrunner Donald Trump will appear at the Iowa State Fair this weekend but he won’t be participating in the traditional “Fair-Side Chats” because according to him, she “shirked her commitment” to remain neutral.
Gov. Kim Reynolds (R-IA) touted the chats in a statement: “These one-on-one ‘Fair-Side Chats’ offer the candidates an incredible opportunity to share their message directly with Iowans. With just 6 months to go until the Iowa Caucus, it’s crunch time!”
“Well, you know who’s not showing up, is the former President Donald Trump,” Sandra Smith said during a Fox News interview with Reynolds on Thursday. “I can put up on the screen here, this is your Fireside [sic] Chats. You said you spoke with Larry Elder already. You’ve got [Mike] Pence and [Doug] Burgum, [Francis] Suarez coming up tomorrow…Saturday is another big day with [Vivek] Ramaswamy and [Niki] Haley and [Ron] DeSantis. And Tuesday into August 18th. You’ve got ’em all there except former President Donald Trump. He said that you shirked your commitment to remain neutral in the campaign and claim responsibility. He thinks he helped you and you’re not helping him, and he doesn’t need to sit down. What is your reaction to that?”
Trump posted to his Truth Social on July 10, “I love Iowa, protected & expanded Ethanol, got 28 Billion Dollars from China for our great Farmers, ended the Estate (Death!) Tax on farms, made the best TRADE deals in history (USMCA, China, & many more), introduced the World to our FARMERS, & kept Iowa’s “First in the Nation” status. I opened up the Governor position for Kim Reynolds, & when she fell behind, I ENDORSED her, did big Rallies, & she won. Now, she wants to remain “NEUTRAL.” I don’t invite her to events! DeSanctus down 45 points!”
“Well, that’s his choice,” Reynolds replied to Smith. “I would love to have the opportunity to interview him. All of the candidates are. I’ve talked to Chris Christie, he’s a good friend. He’s just not participating in Iowa — that’s his choice. I have done so many events with every single one of the candidates. I love it, I’m having fun, and that’s why I can tell you that they are seeing record turnout at all the events, because I’ve participated with so many of the candidates. It’s a long-standing tradition for governors, especially at the beginning of the caucus to stay neutral.”
The DeSantis campaign addressed Trump’s refusal to participate, stating, “Donald Trump’s campaign confirming yet again yesterday that the president will skip Kim Reynolds’ Fair-Side Chat in Iowa this weekend will be the third major cattle call event Trump has skipped in Iowa in recent weeks.”
Watch the clip above via Fox News.
