Former President Donald Trump made the surprise announcement last week that he will be appearing at the Libertarian National Convention later this month.
“Libertarians are some of the most independent and thoughtful thinkers in our country, and I am honored to join them in Washington, D.C., later this month,” Trump said. “We must all work together to help advance freedom and liberty for every American, and a second Trump administration will achieve that goal.”
Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will be appearing at the convention as well, and on Tuesday, the eccentric long shot issued a challenge to the 45th president.
“Let’s meet at the Libertarian convention and show the American public that at least two of the major candidates aren’t afraid to debate each other,” Kennedy said. “I asked the convention organizers and they are game for us to use our time there to bring the American people the debate they deserve!”
Ideally, the Libertarian Party would include either its nominee, if the nominee is decided in time, or another representative of the party in such a debate. Both former libertarian vice presidential candidate Spike Cohen and comedian and podcaster Dave Smith have offered their formidable debate skills. Whether this hypothetical debate would include a libertarian or be a one-on-one with Kennedy, Trump should accept.
Trump is clear that he wants to debate President Joe Biden. It is unlikely that the Biden team allows its candidate within a country mile of a debate stage, considering his age and mental decline, even compared to four years ago. But Trump accepting this debate would put the pressure on the Biden camp.
It would, at least, make for a good attack ad. This debate would also offer both Trump and Kennedy the opportunity to sharpen their swords as Election Day approaches. Kennedy’s strength is his recall, and unlike in a four-hour Joe Rogan podcast, he won’t be able to grandstand with numbers and statistics real or imagined. Trump’s typical stump-style rhetoric won’t work, either.
Even if a Libertarian Party representative isn’t included onstage, I assume there would be competent, principled libertarians questioning the candidates — Cohen and Smith would be two obvious choices — and the audience won’t be won over by either candidate’s go-to tactics.
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Let’s be honest: There is no real downside for anyone involved. Kennedy gets another chance in the sun, libertarians get an opportunity to question a former president and a strong third-party challenger on the topics that matter most to liberty-loving Americans, and Trump removes Biden’s “he wouldn’t debate DeSantis and Haley” card as the 46th president’s staff attempts to shield their doddering candidate.
Even if Trump takes a beating from a libertarian candidate, the audience, or Kennedy (brain worm and all), it is still six months from Election Day. No undecided voter will go blue instead of red this November because of what happened at the Libertarian Party convention. This debate would be fun, and it would be beneficial for Americans to see the former president and the highest-polling third-party candidate in decades answer intelligent, thoughtful questions in front of a neutral, even hostile, audience.
Brady Leonard (@bradyleonard) is a musician, political strategist, and host of The No Gimmicks Podcast.