GOP debate moderator Martha MacCallum: 'The night is about the future of the country'

"Sunday Night in America" host Trey Gowdy offered viewers a unique behind-the-scenes glimpse into the upcoming Republican presidential primary debate with co-moderator and "The Story" anchor Martha MacCallum.

Fox News' Bret Baier and MacCallum will helm the Wednesday night debate, which will take place in Milwaukee starting at 9 p.m. ET and will air across FOX News Media’s platforms.

Gowdy asked MacCallum how she will decide what questions to ask and of whom. MacCallum shared that her strategy will focus on ensuring candidates articulate their visions for America's future. 

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"One of the things that you really want to accomplish here is to give people a chance to share with the audience what they would do to make the country better," MacCallum said. "And then you have to get at it from a political angle as well, because there's a lot of strategy that's involved in how one of these people is going to jockey themselves into being the contender, or one of maybe a couple of contenders who make it through the early stages of this process, starting with the debate, in order to get into that head-to-head position with the former president, Donald Trump."

MacCallum added, "We really want people to walk away from the debate on Wednesday night feeling like they can have a better sense of all these people and maybe their eyes are open to one or two of them that they want to hear more from. I think that's honestly, that's the main goal, is to move this process forward in a way that people feel is edifying and that they are more interested in the morning after on Thursday."

Gowdy pointed out that politicians sometimes sidestep direct questions and not answer the question asked. MacCallum responded by emphasizing the importance of attentiveness for moderators.

"I think it's really important to listen because if you're not listening to the answer after you ask the question, you won't be attuned to whether or not they have dodged it. And I think a lot of times people really want to hear a yes or no answer," MacCallum said. "[We're] the person who's got to keep it on track and hold people to the question and make sure that the viewers and the voters, who are the most important part of the evening, are actually getting an answer to the question."

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Drawing a parallel to sports, Gowdy suggested the need for debate moderators to act like "judges and umpires" instead of athletes. MacCallum agreed and insisted the "night is about the future of the country," not the moderators.

"The night is not about us," MacCallum said. "The night is about how the Republican Party will choose their nominee and the focus really needs to be on these candidates."

MacCallum added, "Our job is to draw out of them in the most concise and challenging way how they would deal with the very serious issues that confront the country."

Nine candidates have so far reached the polling and donor thresholds required by the Republican National Committee to qualify for the Milwaukee debate: Former President Donald Trump, former Vice President Mike Pence, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former Ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

Trump said on his social media app Truth Social Sunday he will "not be doing the debates."

For more Culture, Media, Education, Opinion, and channel coverage, visit foxnews.com/media.

Fox News' Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.

President Biden, Jill visit Hawaii for first time since wildfires devastated Maui

President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will visit Hawaii for the first time since severe wildfires left more than 100 residents dead. The visit also comes amid criticism from both sides of the aisle that Biden has been publicly quiet toward Hawaii and its residents.

During the visit, the president and first lady are expected to meet emergency responders, survivors and community members, as well as federal, state and local officials, and survey the area devastated by deadly wildfires, which killed 114 people, according to a White House official.

The first couple will arrive in Maui in the morning and will take an aerial tour on helicopters of the impacted areas before landing near Lahaina. They will then visit Lahaina to see the wildfire damage firsthand and receive a briefing from the state and local officials.

"Following the tour, the President will deliver remarks paying respects to the lives lost and reflecting on the tragic, lasting impacts of these wildfires on survivors and the community. In his remarks, he will announce the appointment of FEMA Region 9 Administrator Bob Fenton as the Chief Federal Response Coordinator to oversee a long-term coordinated federal recovery effort," the White House said in a statement.

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The White House described Fenton as "one of the nation’s most experienced disaster response-and-recovery officials who has been on the ground in Hawaii from the day the wildfires started."

Biden has tasked Fenton with overseeing Hawaii’s recovery, which includes rebuilding the devastated community and ensuring that it has access to everything the federal government can offer to expedite the process.

Following a speech, the President and the First Lady will meet with survivors, first responders, community members and other officials and volunteers who are supporting the recovery efforts.

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The visit comes amid scrutiny from Republicans and Democrats over how President Biden has responded to the deadly fires.

The criticism started after the President — who was vacationing on a Delaware beach — was asked about Hawaii’s rising death toll and said he had "no comment."

The remark was widely condemned as dismissive of the struggle Hawaiians were enduring.

Maui County and the Maui Police Department on Sunday confirmed that 114 people died in the devastating wildfires, but that number could increase as investigators continue to search the area.

"More than 1,000 are unaccounted for, about 1,050," Hawaii governor Josh Green told CBS News on Sunday. "It will take several weeks still." 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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