The Truth-o-Meter says: Mostly False | Donald Trump vs. John Harwood on length of CNBC debate The third GOP presidential debate would have been a lot longer if it weren’t for Donald Trump, he said. In his closing remarks at the Oct. 28 debate, the real estate mogul touted his deal-making skills, saying he and fellow candidate Ben Carson negotiated with CNBC to cut the debate down to two hours instead of three.