President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump on Wednesday, May 15, agreed to hold two campaign debates – the first on June 27 hosted by CNN and the second on September 10 hosted by ABC – setting the stage for the first presidential face-off in just weeks.
The quick agreement on the timetable to meet followed the Democrat's announcement that he will not participate in fall presidential debates sponsored by the nonpartisan commission that has organized them for more than three decades. Biden's campaign instead proposed that media outlets directly organize the debates with the presumptive Democratic and Republican nominees, with the first to be held in late June and the second in September before early voting begins. Trump, in a post on his Truth Social site, said he was "Ready and Willing to Debate" Biden at the proposed times.
Hours later, Biden said he accepted an invitation from CNN to a debate in June, adding, "Over to you, Donald." Trump said on Truth Social he'd be there, adding, "Let’s get ready to Rumble!!!" And soon after that, they agreed to the second debate on ABC.
"Trump says he’ll arrange his own transportation," Biden wrote on X. "I’ll bring my plane, too. I plan on keeping it for another four years."
Still, the two sides appeared to hold some differences on key questions of how to organize the debates, including agreeing on moderators and rules – some of the very questions that prompted the formation of the Commission on Presidential Debates in 1987.
Biden's campaign had proposed excluding third-party candidates, such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., from the debates outright. Under the debate commission’s rules, Kennedy or other third-party candidates could qualify if they secured ballot access sufficient to claim 270 Electoral Votes and polled at 15% or higher in a selection of national polls.
CNN said that the debate would be held in its Atlanta studios and that "no audience will be present." It said moderators and other details would be announced later. The network held open the door to Kennedy's participation if he or any other candidate met polling and ballot access requirements similar to the commission's.