President Trump has a commanding and seemingly very enduring lead. Trump, who leads his nearest rival for the Republican presidential nomination by some 40 percentage points in opinion polls, is skipping the second debate, just as he did the first one in Wisconsin last month. Perino, a co-moderator of the Sept. 27 debate, said none of Trump's rivals managed to alter the dynamic of the nominating race in that first debate. With voting in the nominating contest starting in Iowa in January, Trump's Republican rivals are running out of time to halt his march to becoming the Republican standard-bearer, despite his myriad legal troubles. Reporting by Tim Reid in Los Angeles; editing by Ross Colvin; editing by Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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