Donald Trump Squashes Bernie Sanders Debate, Calls It ‘Inappropriate’

“I will wait to debate the first place finisher in the Democratic Party, probably Crooked Hillary Clinton, or whoever it may be,” GOP presumptive nominee says

Donald Trump

Donald Trump will not debate Bernie Sanders, calling it “inappropriate” and blaming the “fact that the Democratic nominating process is totally rigged.”

“Based on the fact that the Democratic nominating process is totally rigged and Crooked Hillary Clinton and Deborah Wasserman Schultz will not allow Bernie Sanders to win, and now that I am the presumptive Republican nominee, it seems inappropriate that I would debate the second place finisher,” Trump said in a statement.

The statement continues: “Likewise, the networks want to make a killing on these events and are not proving to be too generous to charitable causes, in this case, women’s health issues. Therefore, as much as I want to debate Bernie Sanders –  and it would be an easy payday — I will wait to debate the first place finisher in the Democratic Party, probably Crooked Hillary Clinton, or whoever it may be.”

During an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” on Wednesday night, Trump said he’d “love to” debate Sanders, joking, “How much is he going to pay me?”

Sanders took to Twitter to accept the challenge: “Game on. I look forward to debating Donald Trump in California before the June 7 primary.”

“If I debated him, we should have such high ratings, and I think I should give — take that money and give it to some worthy charity,” Trump told Kimmel. “If he paid a nice sum for charity, I would love to do that.”

Meanwhile, a technology investment company reportedly offered $10 million to make it happen.

“Yesterday, Mr. Trump asked for a $10 [million] donation to charity in order to accept Mr. Sanders’s challenge to debate him,” Traction and Scale CEO Richie Hecker told BuzzFeed. “We are willing to offer that $10 [million] donation in return for the opportunity to host the debate.

A Sanders vs. Trump debate was first proposed by Fox News executives back in March, according to the New York Times. Sadly for TV networks, it’s not happening.

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