Former President Donald Trump, while citing his lead in the nation's primary polls, said in an interview Sunday that he questions the need to participate in the Republican National Committee's first primary debate next month, and said the process is "actually not fair."
He also told Fox News's Maria Bartiromo on her "Sunday Morning Futures" program that he sees some of the candidates running against him as "good potential Cabinet members."
"We have a lead of 50 and 60 points in some cases," Trump told Bartiromo in the interview, recorded last week at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. "You're leading people by 50 and 60 points, you say, why would you be doing a debate? It's actually not fair. Why would you let somebody that's at zero or one or two or three be popping you with questions?"
Trump also dismissed the idea that Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has been polling in second place behind him, could gain points on him by being in a debate but not facing off against Trump on stage after Bartiromo asked him if he's concerned that the Florida Republican can cut into his lead if he has a good night.
"Or somebody else has a good night and cuts into his lead because that's what's happening," said Trump. "He's going down and a couple of them are going up … I haven't really made up my mind."
Meanwhile, Trump acknowledged that he believes some of the people running against him for the nomination are "good potential Cabinet members" and that he "possibly" sees a potential running mate among the hopefuls.
"You have some very talented people. I've been impressed with some of them. A number of them called me up, not for permission, but sort of, to say they'd like to do it," Trump told Bartiromo. "I think you have good people, good potential Cabinet members."
Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., one of Trump's competitors, is a "good guy," the former president said. "I could see Tim doing something with the administration. But he's right now campaigning, and I'm sure Tim and everybody else would say [they're] only interested in one thing."
Meanwhile, Trump said he expects that President Joe Biden has the Democrat nomination locked up and that there are "a lot of votes" that Democrats get "automatically" that they shouldn't.
"I think I have a lot of union votes, too," said Trump. "The car industry, I'm far better than the Democrats … I think the workers vote for me much more than the union leaders who are indoctrinated into the Democrat Party."
He also said he understands why Biden doesn't want to debate, even though Marianne Williamson and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. want to face off against him.
"I actually think he can't do it," said Trump. "I don't think he's capable of doing it. But why would he do it If he's got a 30 or 40-point lead, which is what he's got, I mean, I don't think RFK expects that he's going to debate … I don't see RFK Jr., I don't see him getting the nomination under any circumstances."
Trump also on Sunday discussed things he would do differently if elected to a second term in office and said one of his mistakes the first time around included some of the people he hired.
"I mean, I wouldn't have put a guy like [former Attorney General] Bill Barr," said Trump. "He was weak and pathetic. I wouldn't have put [former Attorney General] Jeff Sessions. And there are some people that I wouldn't have put in. You know, most people were good … we had [former Secretary of Defense] Mark Esper. I didn't like him. He was incompetent. I thought we had other people I didn't like."
Trump said the issue was that he "didn't know the people" then he hired them. "I know the people now better than anybody has ever known. The people I know, the good ones, the bad ones, the dumb ones, the smart ones."
But when Bartiromo told Trump that he "didn't drain the swamp," he insisted that he did.
"I fired [former FBI Director James] Comey," he responded. "I fired a lot of people. A lot of the people I had, I fired … if I didn't fire Comey, I don't think I would have been able to serve out my term because that was a plot … they were going to try and get me out by making fake charges and fake crimes. Who would have thought this could happen to our country? It's not even possible. The FBI has tremendous problems of credibility."