Trump indicates he will debate Harris
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump proposed three presidential debates on three different television networks in September, among them an ABC News debate he had previously dropped out of after President Biden exited the race.
Speaking with reporters from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Thursday, Trump said his campaign has agreed to three debates, to be hosted by Fox News, ABC News and NBC News. The Sept. 10 debate to be hosted by ABC News is the only one in which the Harris campaign has also agreed to participate. Harris confirmed in a post on X she’d see him in September at the ABC debate.
I hear that Donald Trump has finally committed to debating me on September 10.
I look forward to it.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 8, 2024
The vice president, who was in Detroit at a UAW event, was asked about Trump’s debate proposal, and she indicated she was open to another debate, telling reporters, “I am happy to have that conversation about an additional debate, or after Sept. 10, for sure.”
Trump said last week that the ABC News debate scheduled for Sept. 10, was “terminated,” and instead said he’d debate on Fox News on Sept. 4.
But on Thursday, Trump said the Sept. 10 ABC News debate is on again, and a campaign adviser confirmed the date. The Fox News date Trump mentioned was Sept. 4, although Harris hasn’t agreed to that debate. And according to a Trump campaign adviser, the NBC News debate Trump has agreed to is Sept. 25. An NBC spokesperson said the network has been in conversations with both campaigns about a range of dates, including Sept. 25.
“So we have those three dates and those networks, they’re very anxiously awaiting that date and those dates,” Trump said at Mar-a-Lago. “So we have Sept. 4, Sept. 10 and Sept. 25. We have spoken to the heads of the network, and it’s all been confirmed, other than some fairly minor details.”
The Harris campaign has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Audience composition and location have yet to be determined, Trump said, adding that the “other side,” meaning the Harris campaign, “has to agree to the terms.”
“We think we should do three debates,” Trump said.
Trump also said CBS News would host a vice presidential debate next month, noting that his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, has “really stepped up, he’s doing a fantastic job.” The Harris campaign has previously agreed to the vice presidential debate. CBS News has extended invitations to the Harris and Trump campaigns inviting the candidates to participate in vice presidential and presidential debates.
It was the first Trump-Biden debate in late June that set into motion Mr. Biden’s ultimate departure from the race and his replacement by Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee.
Ed O’Keefe, Gabrielle Ake and Jacob Rosen contributed to this report.
Kathryn Watson is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital, based in Washington, D.C.
