Donald Trump claims he will debate Kamala Harris next month after plans for their first face off were thrown into disarray due to arguments over some on-stage semantics.
In a statement on Tuesday, the former president suggested negotiations were successful with Vice President Harris.
The campaigns were in a public back and forth with ABC over whether microphones would be muted during the other candidate’s turn at speaking – something that was seen to benefit Trump at his CNN debate with Joe Biden in June.
Trump’s statement included some rules but doesn’t specifically mention what is being done about the microphone muting. But the ex-president hinted he got his way and that microphones will be muted.
The two presidential nominees will share a stage for the first time in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 10.
‘I have reached an agreement with the Radical Left Democrats for a Debate with Comrade Kamala Harris,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He noted that the debate host, ABC News, is ‘by far the nastiest and most unfair newscaster in the business.’
‘The Rules will be the same as the last CNN Debate, which seemed to work out well for everyone except, perhaps, Crooked Joe Biden,’ Trump added.
The debate between Trump and Biden led to a series of disastrous events for the President that ultimately led to a pressure campaign to end his reelection bid.
On July 21, Biden dropped out of the 2024 race and endorsed his vice president.
Since becoming the Democratic presidential candidate, Harris has remained on script and has barely stepped out from behind a podium. She has not done a formal sit-down interview or held a press conference.
The Harris campaign has not yet said whether the VP will participate, but released a statement earlier on Tuesday slamming Trump for wanting to repeat the rule from the CNN debate.
‘We have told ABC and other networks seeking to host a possible October debate that we believe both candidates’ mics should be live throughout the full broadcast,’ Harris’ senior advisor for communications Brian Fallon said in a statement.
‘Our understanding is that Trump’s handlers prefer the muted microphone because they don’t think their candidate can act presidential for 90 minutes on his own,’ he continued.
But the Harris team also speculated that Trump was not aware of the microphone dispute, claiming ‘it would be too embarrassing to admit they don’t think he can handle himself against Vice President Harris without the benefit of a mute button.’
‘The Vice President is ready to deal with Trump’s constant lies and interruptions in real time. Trump should stop hiding behind the mute button.’