Courtney Crowder

The Des Moines Register

DES MOINES — Carly Fiorina tweeted Wednesday night that her campaign will donate $2 million to veterans’ causes if fellow candidate Donald Trump agrees to a debate Thursday evening at Drake University.

The tweet was sent after Fiorina's final event Wednesday, where she attacked the New York businessman and called him the “ultimate insider.”

“He has made billions of dollars buying people inside of the political system,” she said. “He freely admits he is a crony capitalist, folks. He’s not going to challenge the system.”

Trump is skipping Thursday's Fox News debate in Des Moines and plans to hold an event at Drake University instead that will benefit veterans.

Earlier at a coffee shop in Oskaloosa, Fiorina said her campaign’s focus on retail politics will lead to a “surprise in Iowa” on caucus night.

“I’m just going to keep talking to the people of Iowa,” she said, “and, guess what, no matter what the media says, no matter what Fox News says, no matter what the polls say, people walk out of these events and say, 'We are going to support you.'”

James Cook, 63, of Fremont, was one of those walk-out supporters. Cook, who caucused for Michele Bachmann in 2012, said he decided to support Fiorina after hearing her candor and willingness to take on the system.

“She’s not conventional,” he said. “When she says she’s going to do something, I think she will do it. Senators and governors can’t be trusted.”

Fiorina, the former HP CEO, has long painted herself as a Washington outsider, separate from the politicians “who just run and win and run and win.” Much of her campaign’s narrative centers on “citizens taking (their) country back.”

“She doesn’t come from an elite establishment,” said Jeff Fortenberry, a Nebraska congressman who's campaigning for Fiorina. “She is a real person who has had to overcome challenges in her own life.”

In recent stops, Fiorina has appealed to Iowans to work the ground for her by asking them to tell everyone they know about her policies and opinions. “The truth is people are influenced most by the thoughts of the people they know,” she said.

“We have developed a campaign to go the distance,” Fiorina added. “If you send me out of here with the wind at my back, I will go all the way.”