Several Allies of Donald Trump to Attend GOP Presidential Primary Debate Despite Trump’s Absence

Several of Donald TrumpÔÇÖs top allies intend to attend the GOPÔÇÖs first presidential primary debate Wednesday in Milwaukee, even though the former president intends to skip the event.

Fox News, the host of the debate, has sent a memo to the Republican campaigns outlining the post-debate “spin room” access. Only surrogates for participating candidates will receive automatic credentials for this media area, excluding Trump and candidates who didn’t meet the criteria to be on stage.

While the memo doesn’t explicitly prohibit Trump’s allies from attending the debate or the spin room, it clarifies that they may attend as guests of other news organizations.

Despite not having their own batch of spin room credentials, Donald Trump Jr. confirmed his plan to travel to Milwaukee for the debate. Kari Lake, a notable Trump ally and former Arizona candidate for governor, will also be in attendance.

Even without Trump’s presence, at least three of his firmest Republican allies in Congress, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, and Reps. Matt Gaetz and Byron Donalds of Florida, are planning to be in Milwaukee for the debate.

To counterprogram the debate, Trump will be at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey, on Wednesday night, and has already recorded an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Despite Fox News not providing spin room credentials to the Trump campaign, Kari Lake’s senior adviser, Caroline Wren, expressed Lake’s eagerness to attend the debate and challenged Fox News to contact her if they think otherwise.