Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has proposed a debate with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris on Fox News on September 4, prompting the Harris campaign to accuse Trump of attempting to avoid a previously scheduled debate on ABC.
Trump announced on Truth Social that the debate would follow similar rules to his first debate with President Joe Biden, who has since dropped out of the reelection race.
He specified that the event would feature a “full arena audience” and take place in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state.Trump and Biden had initially agreed to a second debate on ABC News set for September 10, which Trump now wants to move to Fox News, a network favored by his supporters.
In response, Harris, who recently secured the Democratic nomination for the November 5 election, stated she intends to participate in the originally scheduled ABC debate.Harris tweeted, “It’s interesting how ‘any time, any place’ becomes ‘one specific time, one specific safe space.’ I’ll be there on September 10, like he agreed to. I hope to see him there.”
Harris spokesperson Michael Tyler accused Trump of “running scared” and said the campaign is open to discussing further debates after the agreed-upon September 10 event.On Truth Social, Trump claimed Harris is “afraid” of debating him and reiterated his intention to see her on September 4, or not at all.
He also mentioned that the ABC debate was “terminated” due to Biden’s exit and his own litigation with the network.Recent polls indicate a close race between Harris and Trump, who had a more substantial lead over Biden after their first debate.
ABC News declined to comment on whether Trump had withdrawn from the debate, while Fox News did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Trump’s proposal came shortly after the Democratic National Committee launched an ad campaign mocking him as a “convicted felon” afraid to debate, questioning if his reluctance was related to his stance on abortion.
David Plouffe, an advisor to former President Barack Obama and recent Harris campaign member, criticized Trump on social media, saying, “Now, he seems only comfortable in a cocoon, asking his happy place Fox to host a Trump rally and call it a debate. Maybe he can only handle debating someone his own age.”
Trump is 78, while Harris is 59.
