Stephen Colbert throws his own debate with dueling Donald Trumps

According to television ratings company Nielsen, 12.5 million people tuned in to Fox News between 9 and 11 p.m. for the main stage debate. “Since then they’ve been excellent, they’ve been very nice, but it’s too late”, he said in the interview aboard Trump’s private plane.

Trump, meanwhile, sought to seize the spotlight by boycotting the debate and hosting an event for veterans across town.

Republican candidates itching for a turn at the spotlight redirected their blows from the absent Donald Trump to Texas Sen.

“George Bush skipped the New Hampshire debate to focus on Iowa and Ronald Reagan skipped the Iowa last debate in 1980”, said Husser.

“If you guys ask one more mean question, I may have to leave the stage”, Cruz said.

Rep. Steve King of Iowa, one of Cruz’s most prominent supporters and one of the most socially conservative members of Congress, told CNN on Friday that the Register’s front page came as a surprise – but dismissed it as editorialized.

“When you’re treated badly, you have to stick up for your rights”, the mogul, 69, said as he opened the event, doubling down on his claim that Fox News – and particularly its anchor Megyn Kelly – has shown bias against him.

Trump says he didn’t go to the debate last night because a Fox News moderator didn’t treat him fairly in an earlier debate.

The network said its chairman, Roger Ailes, in conversations with Trump, “acknowledged his concerns” about a “satirical observation” that upset Trump.

Two days before the Iowa caucuses, Donald Trump made a final pitch to evangelical Christians.

But the network refused to remove her and released an apparently sarcastic statement mocking him.

“I kind of miss Donald Trump“.

Residents will choose among the Republican and Democratic candidates battling to become their party’s 2016 presidential nominee.

(R-L) John Kasich, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio participate in the GOP debate.

Trump told his audience that he had spent a good part of the day talking with Fox about the posibility of taking part in the debate. But Trump’s willingness to take on Fox News – and tap into a deep well of far-right resentment against the network – seemed to give candidates like Cruz the go-ahead to confront the network as well.

The tycoon held a rally at the same time as the debate in Des Moines, which his campaign said was to raise money for military veterans.