It was nearly three months ago when Donald Trump and his campaign team agreed to participate in some presidential debates, including an event on Sept. 10, shortly before early voting begins in some states. At the time, of course, the Republican and his political operation assumed he’d share a stage with President Joe Biden.
They now know better — and their willingness to honor the original schedule is, at a minimum, in flux.
Last week, Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters that she was prepared to stick to the agreed-upon debate schedule, despite the fact that she’d been a candidate for less than a week. The likely Democratic nominee went a little further yesterday, explaining that she will, in fact, be on the stage for the event, whether her GOP rival agrees to participate or not.
“We’ll see if Trump shows,” Harris’ spokesperson added.
As things stand, the odds of Trump agreeing to another general election debate aren’t great. The Associated Press reported on the former president’s latest comments on the subject, aired last night on Fox News.
Donald Trump on Monday seemed to back away from his earlier commitment to debate Vice President Kamala Harris, questioning the value of a meetup and saying he “probably” will debate but he “can also make a case for not doing it.”
Fox’s Laura Ingraham pressed him on this point several times, and the Republican nominee kept hedging. Trump said he “likes” debating and “wants” to debate Harris, before adding, “But I also can say this: Everybody knows who I am.”
When the host asked, “Why not debate her?” Trump didn’t contest the premise of the question. He instead replied, “Because [voters] already know everything.”
The former president added that if he agreed to the Sept. 10 debate, it would “reward fake news,” and he’s against making ABC News “rich.”
These were not the words of someone who seems eager to share a debate stage with Harris.
With this in mind, let’s recap recent events.
July 21: Within hours of Biden ending his 2024 candidacy, Trump started hedging on a possible debate and complaining about ABC News, despite the fact that his campaign team had already agreed to have ABC News host the next event.
July 23: Trump doubled down on his original message, adding that he believes ABC “is not worthy of holding a Debate.” Later in the day, he told reporters he was “absolutely” prepared to debate Harris, though he quickly added, “I haven’t agreed to anything.” July 25: Aides to Trump said they wouldn’t commit to another debate. July 29: Trump appeared on Fox News and hedged some more, arguing that he “can also make a case for not doing it.” After the interview aired, the Harris campaign issued a press release with a headline that referred to the former president as “Duckin’ Don.” The statement from the vice president’s spokesperson added, “Why won’t Donald Trump give a straight answer on debating Vice President Harris? It’s clear from tonight’s question-dodging: He’s scared he’ll have to defend his running mate’s weird attacks on women, or his own calls to end elections in America in a debate against the vice president. Vice President Harris will be on the debate stage September 10th. Donald Trump can show up, or not.” This post updates our related earlier coverage.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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