Chris Wallace Will Moderate Fox's August 6 Debate

Fox News Is Hosting The First GOP Primary Debate. Fox News stated in a press release that its August 6 Republican primary will be moderated “by Special Report anchor Bret Baier, The Kelly File anchor Megyn Kelly and FOX News Sunday host Chris Wallace.” [FoxNews.com, May 2015]

Trump Is A Virtual Lock To Qualify For The Debate. The Fox News debate has controversial rules, which state that only the top 10 candidates, according to an average of national polls, will qualify for the debate. Trump is the leader in national Republican primary polling, according to the Huffington Post. [FoxNews.com, May 2015; Huffington Post, accessed 8/3/15]

“Is My Skepticism Sufficiently Clear?” Wallace Has Repeatedly Criticized Trump And His Remarks

Wallace On People Voting For Trump: “Is My Skepticism Sufficiently Clear?” After conservative radio host Jamie Allman said he would vote for Trump if he were the Republican nominee, Wallace replied: “It's a free country ... is my skepticism sufficiently clear?” [KFTK, Allman in the Morning, 6/18/15]

Wallace On “Amateur” Trump: You Wouldn't Put An Amateur In Charge Of A Fortune 500 Company, So Why The White House? Wallace continued on Allman's show:

WALLACE: We would no sooner put an amateur, somebody who had had no experience as the head of a Fortune 500 company -- you know, if you were the chairman of the board and you said, 'All right, I'm going to take some guy who's never had any experience in this profession and we're going to make him the head of this Fortune 500 company,' you'd probably lose your job for business malpractice. And yet we seem to think that somebody can become president of the United States, which is the biggest executive job in the world, and not have any experience in it.

Wallace added that “it's a little different being a real estate developer in New York and being the boss of a corporation with billions of dollars and being able to say 'do it' and what you have to do when you're the president of the United States ... it's a different deal.” [KFTK, Allman in the Morning, 6/18/15]

Wallace: It's Not Right For Trump To “Demonize” Mexican Immigrants. During a separate appearance on Allman's show, Wallace criticized Trump's rhetoric regarding Mexican immigrants:

WALLACE: I vastly prefer what he's [Jeb Bush] saying, which is, which I think is the truth, which is that people come to this country -- and I'm not saying that they should. I mean, a great country has to be able to defend its borders, but people don't come to the United States because they're criminals. I think most people come to the United States because they think they'll be able to provide for their families and have better lives, and to demonize a group of people is, I don't think it's right. [KFTK, Allman in the Morning, 6/25/15]

Wallace Suggested Trump's Anti-Mexican Remarks Show He's Not Serious Enough To Be President. Wallace said in response to Trump's remarks about Mexican immigrants: “It's a serious job and I think you need somebody who attacks the issues seriously, and when Donald Trump says, you know, 'The Mexicans are sending their rapists, and their whatevers, drug dealers across the border, and we're going to build a high wall and we're going to make the Mexicans pay for it, that doesn't strike me as a very serious response.” [KFTK, Allman in the Morning, 6/25/15]

Wallace: Trump's Remarks Aren't Helping His Prospects Of Being President. After Trump's official campaign announcement, Wallace remarked:

WALLACE: Is he getting a lot of attention? Yes. Do I think a lot of people are intrigued by him? Yes. Do I think he's helped his prospects of actually being elected president of the United States? Not particularly. [Fox News Radio, Kilmeade & Friends, 6/18/15]

Wallace: Trump Denigrated McCain's Service, Which Is “Pretty Tough To Defend.” Wallace said of Trump's remarks “denigrating” Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) military service and his time served in a Vietnamese prison camp:

WALLACE: Michael [Needham, CEO of Heritage Action For America], I know that John McCain is not too popular with your wing of the Republican Party. I get the e-mails: He's a RINO, McCain is, Republican in name only. But denigrating his service, and his years -- 5 1/2 years in a Vietnamese prison camp is pretty tough to defend. [Fox Broadcasting Co., Fox News Sunday, 7/19/15]

Wallace: Trump “Is A Worry For The Party In General.” Wallace also said that Trump will say “some things” that “the party is going to kind of flinch at.” [Fox News Radio, Kilmeade & Friends, 6/18/15]

Wallace: “I've Always Been Skeptical About Donald Trump's Political Efforts.” Wallace stated of Trump appearing at the Fox News debate: “I don't know. I'm -- you know I've always been skeptical about Donald Trump's political efforts.” He added that he didn't think Trump was going to run but now that he is, he'll be treated as “a serious candidate.” [Fox News Radio, Kilmeade & Friends, 6/18/15] 

Wallace: Obama “Killed” Trump At The White House Correspondents Dinner, Showing “Politics Ain't Beanbag.” Wallace pointed to President Obama in 2011 mocking Trump's Celebrity Apprentice background as showing politics is a tough business. Wallace added that it's easy for someone to “shoot off his mouth” but different when you're actually on a debate stage. [Daily Beast, 5/1/11; Fox News Radio, Kilmeade & Friends, 6/18/15]