US President Donald Trump commented on the upcoming debate, saying he regrets having to miss it but adding that he will watch a recording of it, because he considers the event “important.”
"It’s too bad I’m going to miss it. I'm going to have to have it somehow taped," Trump told reporters Thursday as he headed to the House Republican Conference retreat in Baltimore, Maryland.
Commenting on the possible outcomes of the debate, Trump said he sees three main leaders who will “take it to the end”: Senator Elizabeth Warren, former US Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders. According to the president, these three candidates are far ahead of the competition.
"You have three people that are leading. I sort of think that those three people are going to take it to the end. It’s going to be one of those three, I think. But you never know in politics,” he told reporters.
He added that he “respects” all the Democratic candidates who will appear on the debate stage Thursday.
"I respect all of them," he said. "Let me tell you, it takes a lot of courage to run for office. I respect all of them."
Trump jokingly noted that his answer was deliberately uncharacteristic for a politician who spends a lot of time on wars of words with his opponents.
"See that? I'm getting to be much better as a politician; you never thought you'd hear that answer," he added with a smile.
