The campaigns of Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are at loggerheads over whether to mute one of the microphones when it’s the other’s turn to speak during the pair’s scheduled debate next month.
In a statement to BBC US partner CBS News, the Harris campaign said it expected both candidates’ microphones to remain live throughout the broadcast.
The Trump campaign reportedly wants the ABC debate scheduled for September 10 to adhere to the same rules agreed upon when Joe Biden was the Democratic nominee. This means the microphone is muted.
Amid the apparent impasse, the former president questioned the network’s impartiality and suggested he might even skip the debate.
Negotiations between the two parties reached an impasse first reported politics.
Before President Joe Biden resigned as the Democratic nominee, his campaign agreed to allow the Trump campaign to participate in two debates – one previously held on CNN in June and another scheduled for September this year. aired on ABC News Channel.
The Biden campaign negotiated debate rules and agreed that microphones would be muted when the candidates are not speaking.
The Trump campaign agreed to the rule and enforced it during the CNN debate in June.
But now, with just 15 days left before the debate is scheduled to air on ABC’s Philadelphia News, the Harris campaign wants the microphones to stay “hot,” meaning they are never turned off during the debate.
This would allow both candidates to interrupt and speak to each other on the debate stage.
“The vice president is ready to respond in real time to Trump’s constant lies and distractions,” Brian Fallon, senior communications adviser to the Harris campaign, said in a statement. “Trump should stop hiding behind the mute button.”
Meanwhile, Trump told reporters on Monday that he would rather have his microphone on during the debate, but said it “worked great” when they were muted on stage with Mr Biden.
“We agreed to the same rules and the same specifications, and I think that’s probably how it should be, but they’re trying to change it,” he said. “The truth is, they’re trying to get out of it because she doesn’t want to debate. She’s not a good debater.”
In a statement to Politico, the Trump campaign reiterated the former president’s accusation that Ms. Harris was looking for a way out of the debate.
“Enough of the games. We accepted the ABC debate on exactly the same terms as the CNN debate,” Trump senior adviser Jason Miller told Politico. The Harris camp asked for a sit-down after agreeing to CNN’s rules. Debate, with notes and opening arguments, we said we would not change the agreed rules.
According to CBS News, a Harris campaign official said when asked about the Trump campaign’s claims that they were “100 percent false.”
Trump took to the “Truth Social” platform on Sunday to question whether an ABC News reporter hosting the debate would ask the Harris campaign questions in advance.
“Why am I debating Kamala Harris on this network?” he wrote.
This isn’t the first time the former president has suggested he could withdraw from a debate. Earlier this month, Trump said he would only debate Ms. Harris if the debate was hosted by Fox News. A few days later he changed course.
Meanwhile, as the November 5 election approaches, the Harris campaign says it has raised $540 million since Biden left office, according to the Associated Press. After Biden dropped out of the race, Harris set a record for fundraising.
On the other hand, the Trump campaign raised $138.7 million in July and has $327 million in cash on hand.
