Trump had initially agreed to two debates with President Joe Biden: one on June 27, hosted by CNN, and another scheduled for September 10 on ABC, regardless of Biden’s status in the race.
Michael Tyler, the communications director for Harris’ campaign, reiterated that the presumptive Democratic nominee will attend the September 10 debate, whether or not Trump participates.
“As Vice President Harris stated last week, the American people deserve to hear from the two candidates running for the highest office, and she will make sure to do that at September’s ABC debate,” Tyler remarked, as reported by The Hill. “If Donald Trump and his team are saying anything other than ‘We’ll see you there’—and it appears they are—it’s a predictable but disappointing reversal. Vice President Harris will be there on September 10; we’ll see if Trump decides to show up.”
On Tuesday, Trump told reporters he would “absolutely” debate Harris, though he hinted he might skip the ABC event, according to The Hill. His campaign further clarified on Thursday that it would not commit to a general election debate with Harris until the Democrats formally selected their nominee. Harris, having secured the necessary delegates for the nomination, is expected to be confirmed through a virtual vote on August 1, ahead of the Democratic National Convention scheduled for August 19-22 in Chicago.
Jason Miller, a senior adviser to Trump’s campaign, told MSNBC on Sunday that the former president is willing to debate the Democratic nominee, as The Hill noted, but emphasized that the Democratic Party must officially select their candidate before locking in debate agreements. “Of course, there will be another debate,” Miller told Axios on Thursday, “and we believe there should be multiple debates. The outlets hosting these debates should also diversify, but it would be a disservice to the public if there’s only one debate against Kamala Harris in the general election.”
Fox News has extended an invitation to both campaigns to host a debate after President Joe Biden withdrew from the race and endorsed Harris earlier this month.
“Now that Vice President Kamala Harris is the presumptive Democratic nominee, Fox News Media is amending its debate proposal for this election cycle. Given the shift in the race, we formally request the opportunity to host a presidential debate between VP Harris and former President Trump,” wrote Fox News Media president Jay Wallace and Fox News Vice President of Politics Jessica Loker.
They proposed hosting the debate in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, September 17, coinciding with the start of early voting in several key battleground states. The letter emphasized the network’s openness to discussions about the exact date, format, and location, “with or without an audience.”
The letter concluded, “In recognition of Fox News Media’s capabilities and reputation, we extend an invitation to all relevant parties to consider our proposal. We look forward to fostering informed political dialogue during this critical moment for our country.”
As of now, neither campaign has responded to the offer. However, Trump addressed the topic on his Truth Social platform earlier this week.
“My debate with Crooked Joe Biden, the Worst President in the history of the United States, was scheduled to be broadcast on Fake News ABC, the home of George Slopadopolus, sometime in September,” Trump wrote.
“Now that Joe has, not surprisingly, quit the race, I think the debate—whoever the Radical Left Democrats choose—should be held on Fox News instead of the biased ABC. Thank you!” he added.
