Why are the big bosses at Fox News begging Donald Trump?

Donald Trump had a private dinner with top leadership from Fox News amid his third indictment, where they lobbied him to consider attending the first Republican presidential primary debate scheduled for this month. The dinner took place at Trump's golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, with Fox News President Jay Wallace and the network's CEO, Suzanne Scott, in attendance.

According to sources familiar with the event, the dinner had been scheduled before news of the indictment emerged. Trump has been openly expressing his reluctance to participate in the debates, including the one hosted by Fox News in partnership with the Republican National Committee on August 23 in Milwaukee and another planned for September at the Reagan Presidential Library in California. He has even referred to attending the debates as "foolish" or "stupid" in an interview with Breitbart News published recently.

Despite Trump's recent caustic criticism of Fox News on his social media site, Truth Social, the dinner was described as cordial. The Fox executives made a gentle plea for Trump to take part in the debate, citing his strong presence on the center stage and the opportunity it presents for him to showcase his debate skills. They argued that not attending could provide other candidates with a chance to shine.

During the dinner, Trump remained non-committal and stated he had not yet made a decision, keeping an open mind. The meeting was initiated by the Fox team, and they had initially planned for host Sean Hannity, who is friendly with Trump, to participate, but he was unavailable due to his 9 p.m. show.

Both Trump's spokesperson, Steven Cheung, and Fox News' spokesperson, Irena Briganti, declined to comment on the private dinner.

Notably, Trump has been expressing dissatisfaction with Fox News for several months, particularly over its coverage of Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, his closest competitor in the Republican primary. At the dinner, Trump resurfaced his complaint about a previous interview that Fox News host Bret Baier conducted with DeSantis, criticizing it as too soft.

Despite ongoing debates within his circle of advisers, Fox News talent, and major Republican donors about whether he should attend the debate, Trump has maintained that appearing alongside his lower-polling rivals could be a risky move, potentially providing them with a moment to attack him. Trump's advisers have advised against debating, but the former president has yet to definitively rule out a surprise appearance. As the debate date draws near, the question remains as to whether Donald Trump will decide to step onto the debate stage once again.

BTW- FTVLive will bet $50 bucks that Trump shows up, even without the groveling from Fox suits.

H/T NY Times