LOU DOBBS (HOST): I want to turn first to the announcement by the Trump campaign, that they -- apparently Donald Trump was infuriated by some release from Fox News about the debate, and has said, in what is assumed by some to be a fit of pique, that he's not going to attend. Your thoughts?
JOHN BOLTON: Well, the announcement from the Trump campaign sounds pretty definitive, and as the former Senator Phil Gramm used to say, never take a hostage you are not prepared to shoot. So I think he is prepared to boycott the debate, I don't think that was a --
DOBBS: That was a more serviceable, I think -- saw, when in earlier times when there weren't so many of them. Hostages, I mean.
BOLTON: Well, look in this case, from Trump's point of view, he has the pretext of this press release. But I think he's playing a larger game, I think he has shown throughout this campaign he's not intimidated by anybody.
DOBBS: That's part of his appeal, for crying out loud.
BOLTON: Not intimidated by the other candidates, now he's not intimidated by the media. And the stakes, I think would be much higher in a general election debate. He's now shown he's prepared to walk away. I think that gives him, for a guy who wrote a book called “The Art of the Deal”, it gives him enormous bargaining leverage down the road in another debate, that may be more important.
