Former President Donald Trump questioned whether he should participate in the upcoming ABC News debate with Vice President Kamala Harris amid a dispute about the rules for the faceoff—as the Trump campaign is reportedly reversing course on its previous demand for microphones to be unmuted when the candidates aren’t speaking.
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference at ... [+]
Trump, in a Truth Social post late Sunday, asked why he should debate Harris on ABC News, citing what he claims was a biased interview the network conducted earlier Sunday with Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and calling the network’s pundits a “Panel of Trump Haters.”
The campaigns told Politico they disagree about whether the microphones should be muted when the candidates aren’t speaking—Harris campaign adviser Brian Fallon told the outlet the campaign wants microphones to be unmuted, with an unnamed source saying Harris’ camp believes Trump will be “prone to having intemperate outbursts.”
The apparent demand marks a reversal from 2020, when Trump’s campaign argued against then-host the Commission on Presidential Debates’ decision to turn off mics during the second debate following repeated interruptions from Trump during the first debate.
Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller told Politico they want the Sept. 10 ABC News debate to be conducted under the same rules they agreed to with the Biden campaign (including muted mics), alleging Harris’ team wanted “a seated debate, with notes, and opening statements,” a claim Fallon denied, insisting Trump, Harris and ABC “have agreed to standing and no notes, and we never south otherwise.”
Trump agreed earlier this month to debate Harris on ABC News, which was initially scheduled to hold the second debate between Trump and Biden on that date, after repeatedly waffling over whether he would participate.
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Biden and Trump agreed in May to a set of rules for both the CNN debate and the Sept. 10 ABC News debate, including no live studio audience, muted microphones when the candidates aren’t speaking and hosts selected from the networks’ regular personnel. It’s unclear whether these rules will carry over. Trump said earlier this month on Truth Social he wanted to debate Harris on Fox News “WITH A FULL ARENA AUDIENCE!”
Trump said earlier this month he also agreed to a Sept. 4 debate on Fox News and that the ABC debate would be Sept. 25. His campaign quickly clarified the ABC debate would be Sept.10 and NBC News would host the Sept. 25 debate, though Harris has only agreed to the Sept. 10 debate so far. An NBC spokesperson also indicated the date Trump floated was not official, according to CBS News, which reported the spokesperson said the network has had conversations with both campaigns about a range of dates.
“Well, I’m glad that he finally agreed to a debate on Sept. 10. I’m looking forward to it and I hope he shows up,” Harris told reporters Thursday, adding that she is open to scheduling an additional debate.
Yes—Oct. 1 on CBS.
Trump’s June 27 debate with President Joe Biden marked a seismic shift in the election that ultimately ended with Biden abandoning his re-election bid less than a month later and endorsing Harris as his replacement. Harris has made inroads on Trump’s polling lead over Biden in the weeks since announcing her candidacy, and now leads by a narrow margin in most polling averages. Trump agreed to the ABC News debate with Harris after previously claiming the agreement he established with Biden for debates had been “terminated.”
Trump Reverses Course: Offers 3 Debates With Harris—Including ABC Debate He Called Off (Forbes)
Trump Pledges He’ll Debate Harris In ‘Pretty Near Future’—After Backing Out Of ABC Debate (Forbes)
Trump Backs Out Of Debate And Proposes Another On Fox News—Harris Claims He's 'Running Scared' (Forbes)