As the clock ticks down to the first republican debate of the 2024 presidential election cycle, there are a lot of questions about the RNC-devised debate participation criteria.
Former California gubernatorial candidate and longtime, conservative radio talk host, Larry Elder, is calling foul on the RNC’s last minute disqualification of him from tonight’s debate.
And he’s threatening to take serious legal action.
Larry Elder on being snubbed from the Fox News debate stage despite meeting requirements:
“It is designed to make sure Ron Desantis is the nominee — anyone other than Trump. This is BS” pic.twitter.com/AG5MdcZJjO
— johnny maga (@_johnnymaga) August 22, 2023
If the RNC does not reverse their decision by 2pm CT and acknowledge that I met all criteria for entry into the presidential debate, I intend to file an FEC complaint for violation of debate rules and illegal campaign contributions.
FEC rules governing debates are clear that… pic.twitter.com/aKbFPOjy1k
— Larry Elder (@larryelder) August 23, 2023
The Daily Mail has more details about Mr. Elder’s dispute with the RNC, and he’s not the only GOP hopeful who believes he’s being unfairly excluded tonight:
‘For some reason, the establishment leaders at the RNC are afraid of having my voice on the debate stage,’ Elder said. ‘Just as I had to fight to successfully be on the ballot in the California recall election, I will fight to be on that debate stage because I fully met all of the requirements to do so.’
Elder wasn’t the only GOP hopeful grumbling about being left off the debate stage.
[Perry] Johnson, a Michigan businessman who previously tried to run for the state’s governor, also threatened to take legal action after being told he didn’t qualify for the first GOP debate.
‘The corrupt and rigged RNC debate process has been a trainwreck from the beginning,’ Johnson said in a statement. ‘Our campaign hit every metric put forward by the RNC and we have qualified for the debate.’
‘It is clear that from the beginning, the RNC knew who they wanted on the stage and who they wanted to ban from the stage. Simply put, this is a flawed decision of a poorly run process of a corrupt organization,’ Johnson continued.
‘This morning, I am working with my team to take legal action against the RNC,’ he said.
The Gateway Pundit article tells us more details about what actually went down a couple of days ago:
The RNC committee, according to Elder’s campaign, is rejecting the Rasmussen poll he included in his package as evidence of his qualifications because the poll is allegedly “affiliated” with Trump.
Below is the information from his campaign:
Prior to the August 21, 2023, 9p.m. EST deadline for qualification for the first Republican National Committee debate, Larry Elder’s campaign submitted a strong, in-depth qualification package to David Bossie, director of debates for the RNC
Larry Elder’s qualification package included proof of:
- EXCEEDING the RNC’s requirement of at least 40,000 individual donors;
- EXCEEDING the RNC’s requirement of 200 donors in 20 states (Elder nearly doubled that, with 200 donors in at least 37 states);
- MEETING the RNC’s polling requirement of at least 1% in select polls, and providing the detailed cross tabs of such polls;
- SIGNING the “Beat Biden” loyalty pledge to support the ultimate GOP nominee;
- AGREEING to allow the RNC to view our Wined fundraising totals which exceed their requirements;
- Other pertinent required information to participate in the debate
Only after receiving our completed qualification package, did the RNC inform us that they were not accepting Rasmussen Polls as qualifying toward the debate.
The reason, as stated by the RNC, is that Rasmussen Polls have ties to former President Donald Trump – an individual who is not even participating in the upcoming debate. Larry Elder has no knowledge about whether Donald Trump has ever worked with Rasmussen previously.
In fact, Rasmussen Polls is a reputable, nationally-recognized firm and one of only THREE polling firms who accurately predicted the outcome of the 2016 Presidential Election (along with the Trafalgar Group.)
Essentially, the RNC decided after the fact that a Rasmussen Poll is not a reputable polling source for the purpose of this debate qualification.
It was a huge flip-flop by the RNC because it was merely two days ago that a very happy Larry Elder posted this on Twitter (X).
I am proud to announce that my campaign has qualified for the RNC Presidential Debate in Milwaukee! My campaign has:
• Exceeded the 40k individual donors required
• Surpassed the requirement of 200+ donors in 20 states, with over 200 donors in 37 states as of now
• Polled at… pic.twitter.com/WeF1lpte12— Larry Elder (@larryelder) August 22, 2023
Rasmussen Report also jumped into the fray with its defense and dispute of the RNC claims.
NOTE: We have not run a poll suggested by or paid for by President Trump or any of his surrogates – but we'd be pleased to do so – see below.
We will run a poll for ANY politician, party or U.S based political group under the rules long published here- https://t.co/9FHaylAyGY https://t.co/UmhkdBtXE7 pic.twitter.com/AB6WdNxIEi
— Rasmussen Reports (@Rasmussen_Poll) August 22, 2023
The RNC’s debate shakeup spurred several prominent conservative to speak out against it.
Recent Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake immediately posted this.
I just hung up with Larry Elder and he tells me that the RNC will not allow him at the debate.
He has three polls showing him over 1% which would qualify him, but he’s been told that one of the polls may have been affiliated with Trump so they won’t accept it.
Larry is an… https://t.co/660VVdvrZw
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) August 22, 2023
Even Emmett Tyrrell, longtime conservative editor-in-chief of American Spectator magazine doesn’t agree with this last minute ax of Larry by the RNC.
He believes it important enough for Larry Elder to be included in the debate that he published an opinion support piece that also pushed to fundraise for the excluded candidate:
Whether GOP primary voters support Donald J. Trump, Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, or another candidate for the White House, they all should want radio host Larry Elder in Wednesday’s first Republican presidential debate.
As a veteran conservative commentor, Elder has thought and spoken about major issues for decades. Moreover, seeing him on stage, along with Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) will chip away at the Democrat lie that the GOP is a lily-white anti-black hate group. At the margin, Elder’s mere presence should help solidify the recent tendency of black voters to give Republicans (especially Trump) a closer look.
To qualify for this debate, Elder needs 3,000 new donors. Their gifts can be as low as $1 each. Contributions are welcome at LarryElder.com.
Trump fans, in particular, should clamor for Elder’s inclusion. His higher profile would splinter the overall non-Trump vote even further, which would make it easier for the former president to triumph in winner-take-all primary states.
So, for ideological, demographic, and strategic reasons, Larry Elder should be on stage in Milwaukee. A $1 donation from each of 3,000 voters would help make this happen.
The question now is why did the RNC pull this last minute change?
Is Larry Elder correct that Ronna McDaniel and the RNC rigged this process to make Ron DeSantis the nominee?
It seems to smell a lot like Clinton, Sanders, and the DNC.
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