Trump wins: CNBC caves to his demands to limit debate length
Donald Trump wasn't happy with the way CNBC was planning to run the next Republican debate — and he went as far as to threaten to sit it out entirely if his demands weren't met. As of Friday morning, it appears CNBC has caved to Trump's demands, with the Republican National Committee calling the campaigns to inform them of a new format, CNN reports. Per Trump's wishes, the debate will not last longer than two hours, including commercials, and will include opening and closing comments, which were previously excluded from the program by CNBC.
Trump, of course, took to social media to gloat about the victory.
Other candidates were unhappy with the proposed CNBC structure, too, with aides to Ben Carson and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) reportedly expressing frustration with the network; Carson also threatened to sit out the debate. Others don't seem to mind either way: Staffers for Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio said their candidates would attend regardless.
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