Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign is adamant that former President Donald Trump is reneging on his commitment to a debate in September. Trump had initially agreed to two debates with President Joe Biden, one on CNN in June and the other on ABC on September 10. The September debate was scheduled to take place regardless of Biden’s status in the race.
Michael Tyler, the communications director for Harris’ campaign, confirmed that the presumptive Democratic nominee will be present at the September 10 debate, regardless of Trump’s attendance.
“As Vice President Harris said last week, the American people deserve to hear from the two candidates running for the highest office in the land, and she will do that at September’s ABC debate,” Tyler said. “Vice President Harris will be there on Sept. 10 – we’ll see if Trump shows.”
While Trump stated that he would “absolutely” debate Harris, he implied that he might not participate in the ABC event. His campaign later announced that they would not agree to a general election debate with Harris until Democrats officially select their nominee.
Harris is reported to have secured enough delegates for the nomination, with a virtual vote scheduled for August 1 before the Democratic National Convention in Chicago from August 19-22.
Jason Miller, a senior adviser to Trump’s campaign, assured that the former president will debate the Democratic nominee but emphasized the need for Democrats to finalize their nominee before locking in the debates.
He also expressed the belief that there should be multiple debates with Harris in the general election to ensure a more comprehensive discussion.
In response to President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from a debate and endorsement of his vice president, Fox News extended an invitation to the campaigns of Trump and Harris to hold a debate on their network.
The letter from Fox News suggested hosting the debate in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, September 17, as early voting begins in key battleground states. The network expressed openness to discussing the date, format, and location of the debate.
Both campaigns have yet to respond to the offer, but Trump took to his Truth Social platform to address the debates. He argued that since Joe Biden has withdrawn from the race, the debate should be held on Fox News rather than the alleged bias of ABC.
With ongoing discussions and negotiations surrounding the debates, the American public eagerly awaits the opportunity to witness informed political dialogue between the two candidates running for the highest office in the land.