Donald Trump to skip Fox debate after consulting Twitter - CNET

After seeking the advice of his Twitter followers, Donald Trump has decided not to participate in Thursday's presidential debate between Republican candidates in Des Moines, Iowa, following a row with debate host Fox News.

The Republican front-runner's campaign announced his decision to back out Tuesday night after complaining of bias against him by Fox News host Megyn Kelly, one of the three moderators for the event. Trump's decision comes just days before the key Iowa caucuses, where polls show a close race between he and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for the nomination.

"Mr. Trump knows a bad deal when he sees one. Fox News is making tens of millions of dollars on debates and setting record ratings (the highest in history), where as in previous years they were low-rated afterthoughts," the campaign said in a statement." Unlike the very stupid, highly incompetent people running our country into the ground, Mr. Trump knows when to walk away."

Trump has for days lobbied to have Kelly removed as a moderator, citing an unspecified "conflict of interest" in a tweet January 23. The acrimony appears to have begun during the first Republican debate in August, when Kelly asked Trump about degrading Idea the candidate had made about women.

"You've called women you don't like 'fat pigs,' 'dogs,' 'slobs' and 'disgusting animals,'" Kelly said during the first debate before Trump interrupted her question with, "Only Rosie O'Donnell."