Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump wants to debate Kamala Harris, but this time “with a full arena audience,” and he now suggests he won’t debate the vice president if she doesn’t agree to the Fox debate he has proposed.
“I have agreed with FoxNews to debate Kamala Harris on Wednesday, September 4th,” Trump posted Friday night on Truth Social.
“The FoxNews Debate will be held in the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, at a site in an area to be determined. The Moderators of the Debate will be Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, and the Rules will be similar to the Rules of my Debate with Sleepy Joe, who has been treated horribly by his Party — BUT WITH A FULL ARENA AUDIENCE!”
Harris and Democrats attempted to use the delay in agreeing to the debate location and format as suggesting Trump did not want to debate, but Trump campaign officials and Trump both said the debate will happen but on new terms.
The debate to which Trump had agreed was structured on facing President Joe Biden, who dropped out of the race on July 21 after pressure from Democrats. He has since backed Harris as the nominee.
Democratic delegates are voting this weekend. Voting ends Monday, but Harris has secured enough votes for the nomination.
“Donald Trump is running scared and trying to back out of the debate he already agreed to and running straight to Fox News to bail him out,” Harris campaign communications director Michael Tyler wrote in a statement. “He needs to stop playing games and show up to the debate he already committed to on Sept 10.
“The Vice President will be there one way or the other to take the opportunity to speak to a prime time national audience. We’re happy to discuss further debates after the one both campaigns have already agreed to. Mr. Anytime, anywhere, anyplace should have no problem with that unless he’s too scared to show up on the 10th.”But in a post on Truth Social Saturday afternoon, Trump said it’s Sept. 4 or never.
“Kamala Harris doesn’t have the mental capacity to do a REAL Debate against me, scheduled for September 4th in Pennsylvania. She’s afraid to do it because there is no way she can justify her Corrupt and Open Borders, the Environmental Destruction of our Country, the Afghanistan Embarrassment, Runaway Inflation, Terrible Economy, High Interest Rates and Taxes, and her years long fight to stop the words, ‘Merry Christmas,'” he posted.
“I’ll see her on September 4th or, I won’t see her at all. She is acknowledged to be the Worst Vice President in History, which works very nicely against the Worst President, Crooked Joe Biden. The combination of these two Low IQ individuals have destroyed our Country, but we will MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
According to New York Times reporter Maggie Hagerman, Trump has “backed out of ABC,” meaning the ABC News debate that he has repeatedly said was agreed to with Biden as the presumptive nominee.
Trump also said the delay was related to his rejection of ABC News as the debate host due to a “conflict of interest” amid the pending lawsuit against host George Stephanopoulos — a onetime Clinton White House adviser whom Trump has accused of showing liberal bias as a host.
“The Debate was previously scheduled against Sleepy Joe Biden on ABC, but has been terminated in that Biden will no longer be a participant, and I am in litigation against ABC Network and George Slopadopoulos, thereby creating a conflict of interest,” Trump’s Truth Social post added.
Trump’s post was removed for a few minutes before being reposted, with Trump deleting his proposal for a “major” town hall gathering on the same date if Harris was “unwilling or unable to debate.”
Harris had responded last month that she was “ready” after Fox News proposed the presidential debate between the two candidates Sept. 17.
After Biden dropped out of the race and backed Harris, Trump said he would not debate under the terms negotiated with the failed Biden campaign because Harris was not yet handed the nomination by Democrats.
Harris earned enough votes to be the nominee on Friday in a virtual vote, as Democrat delegates who were won in the primary by Biden instead voted for her. Voting concludes Monday.
“Kamala Harris — the least popular vice president in modern U.S. history — has just officially been installed as the presumptive Democrat nominee for president without a single vote cast in her name,” the Trump campaign wrote in a statement Friday.
“In a process more reminiscent of communist China, Democrat elites deposed their previous nominee when their coverup of his decline was no longer tenable, then coronated Kamala in the least democratic way possible.
“Now, they’re shielding her from the public as long as they can lest voters notice her dangerously liberal ideology and complete lack of fitness for office.”
Also, Trump has alleged for the first time that the Democrats orchestrated a presidential nominee bait and switch in an effort to drain his campaign funds before moving the goal posts.
“I spent Hundreds of Millions of Dollars, Time, and Effort fighting Joe, and when I won the Debate, they threw a new Candidate into the ring,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. “Not fair, but it is what it is!”
Trump is ready to move forward with a new debate schedule against the Democrats’ latest candidate, now that she has secured the votes to be the party’s nominee without having won a single primary vote from Americans.
Notably, Trump has long wanted the debate to come before early voting started.
“Nevertheless, different Candidate or not, their bad Policies are the same, and this will be strongly revealed at the September 4th Debate,” Trump’s statement added. “I look forward to meeting and debating Kamala Harris on September 4th.
“This date is convenient and appropriate in that it is just prior to the September 6th start of Early Voting in the 2024 Presidential Election.
“I look forward to seeing everyone on September 4th, in the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania!”
Harris’ campaign has yet to announce an official Fox News debate agreement, instead denying an agreement is in place and sticking to the terms negotiated with the elected Biden campaign.