Former President Donald Trump will skip next week’s GOP 2024 presidential primary debate and instead sit down for an interview with Tucker Carlson, The New York Times reported Friday.

Multiple sources close to Trump have said that the GOP presidential primary leader will not attend the debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, according to the NYT. He has long intimated his plans to avoid the first debate on the campaign trail. Trump, who is leading his Republican opponents by double digits in both national and early primary state polls, shared a lengthy statement on social media Thursday that concluded with “People know my Record, one of the BEST EVER, so why would I Debate?”

It was reported earlier this month that Fox News executives had dinner with Trump in an apparent attempt to convince him to join the debate. Per Republican National Committee 2024 debate rules, the former president would have had to sign a pledge to support whoever wins the GOP presidential nomination. Trump explained last week he wouldn’t want to sign it because there are “three or four people that I wouldn’t support for president.” The former president added, “So right there, there’s a problem, okay?”

Trump received heavy criticism for not attending The Family Leadership Summit in Iowa and “fireside chat” with Carlson in July. All other major campaign opponents — including second-place challenger Ron DeSantis — joined Carlson in Iowa for an interview.

Carlson, the NYT noted, has refused to stop his show from airing on Twitter despite legal notices from his former employer. This week, Carlson has released interviews with Democratic primary candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

According to The Daily Mail, Carlson was also reportedly at Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey this week — sparking speculation.

Trump skipping a GOP debate on Fox News is not unprecedented. During his 2016 run, Trump opted not to join a debate in January hosted by the network.

So, his decision to forgo the RNC event is not necessarily surprising. What he is doing instead, however, could be enough to shift attention away from the event and steal the spotlight, if true. On Twitter, both men received praise and criticism for their potential plans.

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“What a great move by Trump & by Tucker!” New England radio host Howie Carr tweeted. “Bleep the Fox RINO’s.”

What a great move by Trump & by Tucker!

Bleep the Fox RINO's.

Trump Plans to Skip G.O.P. Debate for Interview With Tucker Carlson https://t.co/rLM9l0iEHO

— Howie Carr (@HowieCarrShow) August 18, 2023

New York Times reporter Jonathan Swan, who shared a byline on the story, also tweeted, “To state the obvious: this would be a major affront to Fox News and to the R.N.C.”

To state the obvious: this would be a major affront to Fox News and to the R.N.C.

— Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) August 18, 2023

Puck News journalist Tara Palmieri had similar reporting Thursday evening, claiming that both parties involved are “just working out logistics for the interview on the night of the debate.”

New York Times confirms what I had in my newsletter last night — that the Trump and Tucker are just working out logistics for the interview on the night of the debate, read here: https://t.co/pyfzpjseTY https://t.co/2RFT742Tuh

— Tara Palmeri (@tarapalmeri) August 18, 2023

Britney Spears definitely got everyone’s attention when she shared several cryptic posts about wisdom and being able to see clearer following news of her split from husband Sam Asghari.

The 41-year-old pop singer, who has yet to directly address the split after her husband shared the news on social media, posted one video zooming in on a painting of a woman sleeping with her eyes closed.

She captioned the first post, “Sometimes you see more with your eyes closed!”

A short time later, she made a second post showing a black-and-white drawing of two women appearing to possibly share a secret. One woman is holding a jar with a little man on his knees, and the other woman is whispering in her ear.

“How do you read this?” the pop star wrote. “It’s interesting! I see it as a message in a bottle! Or a baby who needs to get out!”

Britney Spears planning new album amid Sam Asghari divorce, ‘getting songs from some big artists’ https://t.co/SdSquT8xcp pic.twitter.com/3o97443KLz

— Page Six (@PageSix) August 17, 2023

“They whisper the poison like in ‘Alice In Wonderland’ and they wait to see if they have the cure!” she added. “Wise birds know who they are [brain emojis]!”

At the time of publication, Spears has the comments turned off so there was no responses about the posts.

On Thursday, Asghari broke his silence, confirming reports that the pair were calling it quits and that he had filed for divorce after 14 months of marriage.

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“After 6 years of love and commitment to each other my wife and I have decided to end our journey together,” the fitness trainer said. “We will hold onto the love and respect we have for each other and I wish her the best always.”

“S*** happens,” he added. “Asking for privacy seems [ridiculous] so I will just ask for everyone including media to be kind and thoughtful.”

The “Womanizer” hitmaker and Asghari started dating in 2016 and five years later the two were engaged, Page Six noted. In November 2021, a judge terminated her nearly 14-year conservatorship. Spears and Asghari tied the knot in June 2022 at a ceremony filled with famous stars and performers.