Donald Trump’s day trip to an Atlanta jail Thursday will show that the defining moments of the 2024 election are more likely to happen in the courtroom than in campaign trail rituals like the presidential debate that he cold-shouldered.
The idea that the front-runner for a major party nomination would boycott the first televised clash between candidates, then the next day surrender to authorities over his fourth criminal indictment would have been unthinkable at any previous moment in history. But that’s the reality as an unprecedented presidential election unfolds under the shadow of Trump’s criminal peril – and his extraordinary strength in the GOP primary that, at least for now, allows him to ignore all the normal rules of campaigning.
The fiery Republican Party debate in the critical swing state of Wisconsin on Wednesday night was the kind of conventional event that White House hopefuls have used for decades to try to ignite their campaigns. It crackled with spirited moments between torqued-up rivals on issues like abortion and several boiling personal feuds. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s patience snapped at the glib answers of 38-year-old entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis didn’t have the breakout moment some may have hoped for the candidate polling in second, although he appeared to steady his campaign after a series of stumbles triggered ridicule and speculation that he is in free fall.
And yet the melee in Milwaukee was like a prize fight that lacked the reigning champion, as Trump stayed home, reasoning that he is so far ahead in the GOP primary that he had nothing to gain by showing up. At best, the debate turned into an audition for second place in a race that, on the current trajectory, looks likely to catapult Trump to his third consecutive Republican nomination.
The debate – hosted by Fox News, which has…
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