“Don't Walk Away From It!”: O'Reilly Appeals To Donald Trump To Come To Fox News Debate

O'Reilly Pleads With Trump Later In The Show: “I Just Want You To Consider It”

From the January 27 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor:

BILL O'REILLY (HOST): I don't think not showing up at the debate tomorrow night is good for America. Voters are still assessing you. They need to see you in high profile situations. Or am I wrong? 

DONALD TRUMP: Well, I think you're wrong because, frankly, when you're mistreated as we were with the Iran deal, our country should have walked. Secretary Kerry, President Obama should have walked from that deal. You would have made a much better deal. I was not treated well by Fox. They came out with this ridiculous PR statement. It was like drawn up by a child. It was a taunt. I said how much of this do you take? I have zero respect for Megyn Kelly. I don't think she is very good at what she does. I think she is highly overrated. And frankly she is a moderator. I thought her question last time was ridiculous. In fact, everybody said -- everybody said I won all six debates and especially the last one. So I don't mind debating. Actually I like debating. 

O'REILLY: Let's look at it from a broader point of view rather than how you feel. You are running for president. I believe you want to improve the country. I believe that personally, all right, as an American that you want to improve the country. By doing this, all right, you lose an opportunity to convince others, who may put you into the White House that indeed is true. You have, in this debate format the upper hand. You have 60 seconds right off the top to tell any of the moderators you're a pinhead, your question is unfair and here is why and here is what I want to say. By walking away from it, you lose an opportunity to persuade people that you are a strong leader. That's my opinion.

[...]

O'REILLY: You made your case. You won the debate. That's what America is about. Robust debate. 

TRUMP: That's fine. 

O'REILLY: Don't walk away from it!

Later in the show, Bill O'Reilly again petitioned Trump to reconsider and attend the debate:

BILL O'REILLY (HOST): But you can be side tracked sometimes and I'm not talking about you Donald Trump, but any human being can and not see what the real important thing is. Because look, Putin is going to come at you, the mullahs will come at you. Certainly the terrorists will come at you and it's going to be personal. They're going to do everything they can to diminish you. But you have to as President, you have to rise above that and do what is best for the country. And this exposition that we're talking about today. People are going to say Trump is just too self-absorbed to be president. He needs to look to the bigger picture and the bigger picture is get your message to the folks.

DONALD TRUMP: There's got to be something, because you set the all-time record in cable history and so did CNN --

O'REILLY: They want to know you.--

TRUMP: A lot of people do know me.

O'REILLY: They want to know you, but walking away from this debate you're not giving them the opportunity to know you as well as they would like.

TRUMP: I am not walking away. Bill, I am not walking away.

O'REILLY: Would you do be a favor? --

TRUMP: Bill, I'm not --

O'REILLY: Because I bought you so many vanilla milkshakes -- I bought you so many vanilla milkshakes you owe me.

TRUMP: That's true.

O'REILLY: Will you just consider? I want you to consider, think about it. Say look, I might come back. Forgive, go forward, answer the questions, look out for the folks. Just want you to consider it. You owe me milkshakes. I'll take them off the ledger, if you consider it.

TRUMP: Well even though you and I had an agreement that you wouldn't ask me that, which we did, I will therefore forget that you asked me that, but it's up to Fox, it's not up to me Bill what they did --

O'REILLY: You're actually telling the truth there.

TRUMP: We had an agreement. You actually did break your agreement. --

O'REILLY: You're tell the truth that I said --

TRUMP: I told you upfront, don't ask me that question, because it's an embarrassing question for you and I don't want to embarrass you.

O'REILLY: Right, but I am not going to listen to any political person tell me don't ask me anything. But you're absolutely an honest man, that I said I'll try not to do it, but the milkshake thing just overwhelmed me, but I'm asking you to reconsider it.

TRUMP: A lot of milkshakes.

Previously:

Trump, Fox Spar Over Kelly's Role In Debate

The Right-Wing Noise Machine Implodes Over Trump -- And The GOP Gets Burned

Fox's Megyn Kelly Responds To Trump Pulling Out Of Fox Debate: “He Doesn't Get To Control The Media”