A reader who must remain anonymous, a strong Trump-supporter, has come up with an intriguing idea for how he could resolve the question of whether or not to participate.  I quote this well established professional with a business that must be protected from the retaliation the left now engages in against its perceived enemies:

I was thinking about the first Republican debate and the question whether Trump would participate or not. I think that Trump should treat the debate like an episode of the Apprentice and the debate participants as job applicants for the position of Vice President.

Perhaps have a live feed of him watching the debate. Split screen. Trump head and shoulder takes up the left half of the screen while the right half of the screen shows a full body shot of whichever Republican is speaking. Trump would always be onscreen and always appearing larger and dominant compared to the smaller figure on the right side of the screen.

And while watching the debate he says nothing. Doesn't make a sound. Nodding approvingly when someone makes a good argument that he agrees with. Shaking his head when someone comes across as weak or vacillating. Smiling and nodding when someone attacks the hosts, Biden or the FBI. Sphinx-like, not showing any emotion or making any movement of his head or mouth when someone praises or defends him.

He can recast the "Presidential" debate as tryouts for the VP slot just by silently sitting in an office watching with the rest of us. I will bet more people would tune into the feed of Trump watching the others tear each other apart than would watch debate on Fox or CNN combined.

I look forward to readers' reactions.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0 license.