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Hillary Clinton's campaign issued a statement saying they would decline Fox New's invitation for a California debate, saying they're focusing on the general election. | Getty Clinton declines Fox News debate with Sanders

Hillary Clinton has declined an invitation to participate in a Democratic debate on Fox News, the campaign said Monday evening.

"We have declined Fox News' invitation to participate in a debate in California. As we have said previously, we plan to compete hard in the remaining primary states, particularly California, while turning our attention to the threat a Donald Trump presidency poses," campaign communications director Jennifer Palmieri said in a statement.

"We believe that Hillary Clinton's time is best spent campaigning and meeting directly with voters across California and preparing for a general election campaign that will ensure the White House remains in Democratic hands."

In February, the Clinton and Sanders campaigns agreed to extend the Democratic debate schedule by four more debates. Three have been held, with the final debate to be held in California in May before the state's June 7 primary, according to the agreement. The statement does not signal good news for any possible California debate.

Last week, Sanders accepted the invitation from the network to participate in the debate. Fox News has expressed interest in holding a Democratic debate for months and has been publicly lobbying the Democratic National Committee — earlier this month, Fox sent letters to both campaigns formally inviting them to a debate, moderated by Bret Baier, Megyn Kelly and Chris Wallace. Clinton and Sanders both appeared on Fox News earlier this year in back-to-back town halls moderated by Baier.

"Naturally, Fox News is disappointed that Secretary Clinton has declined our debate invitation, especially given that the race is still contested and she had previously agreed to a final debate before the California primary," Fox News Vice President and Washington Managing Editor Bill Sammon said in a statement.

Sanders also expressed frustration: “I am disappointed but not surprised by Secretary Clinton’s unwillingness to debate before the largest and most important primary in the presidential nominating process."

A DNC spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment.