Trump: Fox Debate Absence May Have Affected Iowa Showing

Still national GOP frontrunner Donald Trump conceded at a press conference Tuesday that not participating in the Iowa GOP debate (over his tiff with Fox News) might have affected his showing in Iowa, where he was something of a surprise second to Sen. Ted Cruz.

But Trump said he did not regret the decision and would make it again, saying that raising $6 million for veterans--at the alternative event he scheduled opposite the debate last week--was worth that second place.

Trump refused to participate in the debate citing the fact that Megyn Kelly was moderating and a tongue-in-cheek Fox press release mocking his criticisms of Kelly.

A more reflective Trump said that if he had known how popular he would be in Iowa, he might have spent a little more time or money there.

On a more upbeat note, former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown announced Tuesday that he was endorsing Trump.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.