Trump to buck RNC's TV plan, negotiate with networks directly for debates

NEW YORK, Nov. 2 (UPI) -- Billionaire Donald Trump has his own solution to the Republicans' dissent over recent coverage of the party's presidential debates: Negotiate the TV deals himself.

The Republican National Committee has expressed distaste for CNBC's coverage of last week's debate at the University of Colorado -- saying the network and its moderators were "mean-spirited" and "petty" in their approach to the event.

As a result, the RNC announced Friday it had backed out of an upcoming debate scheduled for Feb. 26.

In a statement, the RNC said it would seek input from its presidential candidates and formulate a plan going forward.

A joint letter was drafted by Republicans Sunday, to be sent to network executives, which included a list of requirements the party mandates for any future debate.Two representatives from the Trump camp were present during the letter's drafting.

Trump, though, said Monday that he won't go along with that plan -- instead opting to continue what he says his campaign has been doing for three debates already.

"As we have for the previous three debates, the Trump campaign will continue to negotiate directly with the host network to establish debate criteria that will determine Mr. Trump's participation," a Trump spokesperson said in an email to The Hill. "This is no different than the process that occurred prior to the FOX, CNN, and CNBC debates."

One campaign official said what Trump wants and what the other candidates want is effectively the same thing.

"If they want to send their own letter, that's fine -- a letter's a letter," Barry Bennett, Ben Carson's campaign manager, said Monday. "The Trump folks were clear about what they wanted, and the Carson campaign agrees with them 90 percent of the time. We are getting opening and closing statements. We are going to get some parity in questions. We are going to actually get formats announced to the campaigns. Trump's basically asking for the same thing, he's just going to do with his own letterhead."

Some Republicans, though, view the Trump camp's move as a bad one.

"I think the Trump folks are overestimating their ability to negotiate on their own," Brett O'Donnell, a senior adviser to Lindsey Graham's campaign, said.

The RNC's letter has not yet been sent to network executives. Author and longtime GOP attorney Ben Ginsberg submitted the letter to the GOP campaigns and asked for edits within two days.

Republicans have voiced criticisms about each of the three debates so far. Notably, Trump spurred controversy following the first debate on Aug. 6 when he blasted Fox News and newswoman Megyn Kelly.

Prior to last week's debate, campaign officials for Rand Paul and Chris Christie complained their green rooms on the Boulder, Colo., campus were far below standard compared to those given to Trump, Carson and Rubio.