CNN Republican Primary Debate Sparks Questions About Trump, Loyalty Pledge

CNN announced Thursday that the network will host two additional Republican primary debates in January, giving voters a couple more chances to hear from GOP presidential hopefuls before heading to the polls.

The debates will be hosted in Iowa and New Hampshire—the two states that will hold the first rounds of voting for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination. The first event will take place on January 10 at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, less than a week before Iowa caucus voters cast their ballots. The second debate is scheduled for January 21 at St. Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire.

The newly announced debates, however, are not sanctioned by the Republican National Committee (RNC), raising questions about the committee's "Beat Biden Pledge" that all GOP candidates were required to sign in order to participate in the first four primary debates.

What the Pledge Says

According to a copy of pledge that was shared online by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' 2024 campaign, the vow states that the signee accepts that if he or she fails "to sign this pledge or if I participate in any debate that has not been sanctioned by the Republican National Committee, I will not be eligible to participate in any future Republican National Committee sanctioned debates."

The pledge also affirms that if the signee does not win the 2024 Republican nomination, "I will honor the will of the primary voters and support the nominee in order to save our country and beat [President] Joe Biden."

A source familiar with the matter told Newsweek on Thursday that the RNC is considering releasing candidates from the part of the pledge that limits signees from only participating in RNC-sanctioned events. The committee wrapped up its sponsored debates on Wednesday with its fourth event, featuring candidates DeSantis, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, ex-New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy. Former President Donald Trump, GOP front-runner, skipped all four debates.

The RNC has no plans to host additional primary debates ahead of the Iowa caucuses on January 15.

CNN's announcement Thursday was also welcomed by DeSantis on X, formerly Twitter, who wrote from his personal account, "Looking forward to debating in Iowa!"

Where Trump Comes Into Play

CNN's opportunity to independently host debates may also pave a way for Trump to participate in the events. The former president continues to hold a healthy lead for the next GOP nomination in preliminary polling.

Trump previously said that he would not participate in the RNC-sanctioned debates because he took issue with the committee's loyalty pledge, telling Newsmax's Eric Bolling in August that, at the time, there were "three or four people" in the GOP pool that he would not support as president.

The "Beat Joe Biden" pledge also states that the hopefuls agree not to run as an independent or write-in candidate if they are not chosen for the Republican nomination.

Trump has previously criticized the RNC for hosting primary debates, given that polling consistently gives him a double-digit lead over the candidates who have participated in the onstage debates. In a Truth Social post in November, the former president said that the committee should "save money on lowest ever ratings debates" and instead use the funding "against the Democrats."

Newsweek reached out to Trump's press team via email for comment Thursday afternoon.