Ron DeSantis calls on Donald Trump to join Iowa debate, continues criticism of Nikki Haley

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — After Wednesday's Republican presidential candidate debate in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in Iowa that he wants frontrunner Donald Trump to appear at a debate in Des Moines scheduled just days before the caucuses.

DeSantis told reporters Dec. 7 after an event in Cedar Rapids, "I think he (Trump) has a lot to say on his keyboard, but he should get on stage and stand up there for two hours and take the questions that everybody else does. I think it would be useful and I know a lot of voters here will expect that, because they take this process very seriously."

CNN said Thursday it will host Republican candidate debates next month in Iowa and New Hampshire, the first events of their kind not sponsored by the Republican National Committee.

The debate at Drake University is scheduled for Jan. 10, with the Iowa Caucuses on Jan. 15.

More: Where are DeSantis, Trump, Haley? Follow them on our 2024 Iowa Caucuses Candidate Tracker

So far, Trump, the clear front-runner, has skipped every debate this year.

DeSantis also spoke Thursday in Cedar Rapids about his own performance at Wednesday night's debate — and continued attacks on his chief rival aside from Trump, former United Nations ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

"I think what you saw on the stage last night was I'm the person that can bring change to D.C. I'm not worried about these liberal donors on Wall Street that have really gravitated to Nikki Haley. Obviously, I'm not running for any type of personal vendetta. It's about the American people's issues and it's about getting things done for the country," DeSantis said.

DeSantis and Nikki Haley were tied for second place far behind former President Donald Trump in the most recent Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa Poll, though polling nationally has shown Haley's popularity has been increasing while DeSantis' has been slipping.

DeSantis has been accumulating a rising number of endorsements from Iowa political leaders, including Gov. Kim Reynolds and Family Leader president and CEO Bob Vander Plaats — neither of whom were with him in Cedar Rapids.

When asked by reporters about his position in the polls, DeSantis said, "What we're doing is producing caucus voters. It's not the same as a poll."

Reflecting on his endorsements and his recent completion of visits to all 99 of Iowa's counties, DeSantis said, "All this stuff is going to come to fruition over the next 39 to 40 days, and it's going to make a big, big difference for us."

More: When are the 2024 Iowa Caucuses? Mark your calendar

Phillip Sitter focuses for the Des Moines Register on reporting on suburban growth and development in the western metro areas. Phillip also is helping cover Republican presidential campaigns, including that of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, ahead of the 2024 Iowa Caucus. Phillip can be reached via email at psitter@gannett.com. He is on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @pslifeisabeauty.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Ron DeSantis calls on Donald Trump to debate 5 days before Iowa Caucuses