Emily Bloch | The Philadelphia Inquirer (TNS)
PHILADELPHIA — Before President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him, Biden and former President Donald Trump had agreed to one final showdown. Then everything changed.
Now, the general public is left wondering: Will the previously scheduled presidential debate still go on? Will the public have an opportunity to watch Harris and Trump — who have already made public jabs at each other — go toe-to-toe on political positions on the national stage?
Here’s what we know — and what we don’t — about a presidential debate between Harris and Trump.
Is a debate even happening?
It’s possible.
Harris, who has quickly become the presumptive Democratic nominee, has not spoken about a debate yet, while Trump has seemed wishy-washy since Biden ended his reelection bid.
Trump expressed hesitancy in a series of Truth Social posts, remarking that he didn’t know who he’d be debating after Biden bowed out and calling for debates to be hosted by the right-leaning Fox News. The original debate was scheduled to be hosted by ABC.
In an interview with CBS, Trump said, “I think whoever it is, I’d like to debate. Yeah, sure.”
On Tuesday, the Associated Press reported that Trump said he’d like to debate Harris “more than once” but wouldn’t commit to appearing at the September debate. He added in a press call that he was “not thrilled about ABC.”
”I think debating’s important for a presidential race,” Trump said. “You sort of have an obligation to debate.”
When is the next presidential debate?
The next Trump v. Biden debate was scheduled to air on ABC on Sept. 10.
It was intended to be moderated by ABC World News Tonight anchor David Muir and ABC News Live Prime anchor Linsey Davis. ABC has not publicized any updates as of publication time.
What else do we know?
Jason Miller, a senior member of Trump’s campaign team, told NBC there would “definitely” be another debate. But at least one other GOP source has expressed skepticism.
What about a vice presidential debate?
As you can see, everything is sort of in flux right now.
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About a week ago, Harris and Trump’s veep choice, Sen. JD Vance, R., Ohio, were in the process of selecting potential dates for a vice presidential debate. Now that she’s seeking the presidency, Harris’ debate with Vance appears to be a moot point.
During his first solo speech as a vice presidential candidate in Ohio on Monday, Vance expressed his disappointment he wouldn’t get to debate Harris after all.
“I was told I was going to debate Kamala Harris,” Vance said. “And now President Trump is going to get to debate her?”
What happened when Kamala Harris debated Mike Pence?
In 2020, Harris’ debate against Trump’s then-running mate, Mike Pence, lasted 90 minutes and was largely unmemorable (which is typically the case for vice presidential debates). A recap from BBC at the time said both candidates had strong moments and stumbles.
One sticking point was Pence’s tendency to speak over or interrupt both Harris, the first Black woman vice presidential candidate, and moderator Susan Page.
“Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking,” Harris said at one point. “If you don’t mind letting me finish, then we can have a conversation.”
What happened in the first presidential debate this year?
Biden’s poor performance at the debate with Trump in Atlanta on June 27 is said to be the catalyst to his dropping out of the race.
Multiple outlets called the showing “disastrous” with Democrats voicing doubts on whether the incumbent was fit for another term.
Meanwhile, Trump used charged rhetoric, exaggerating and losing his temper at points.
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