Will Harris and Trump debate? Trump suggests it could be in ‘pretty near future’
In a new interview, former President Donald Trump said he intended to debate Vice President Kamala Harris in the near term, following his withdrawal from an upcoming ABC News debate.
“We’ll be debating her, I guess, in the pretty near future,” Trump said during a phone interview on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends” Aug. 7. “It’s going to be announced fairly soon.”
“I don’t know how she debates. I hear she’s sort of a nasty person, but not a good debater,” the former president said.
He added there had not been behind-the-scenes discussions with the Harris campaign, but that multiple news outlets — including CBS and NBC — had reached out to schedule a debate.
“I’d love to see it on Fox, but you know, it takes two to tango,” Trump said.
The interview comes days after Trump pulled out of an ABC News debate with Harris scheduled for Sept. 10. The event was arranged before President Joe Biden announced he would not seek re-election.
In an Aug. 2 post on Truth Social, Trump said the ABC debate was “terminated,” citing Biden no longer being a participant and his ongoing litigation against George Stephanopoulos, an anchor with the network.
Trump is suing the anchor for defamation over comments he made about writer E. Jean Carroll’s sexual abuse case against Trump, in which he was found liable, according to CBS News.
In the same Truth Social post, Trump said he had instead accepted an invitation for a Fox News debate on Sept. 4. The event, he said, would be hosted by the network’s Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, and it would feature a “full arena audience.”
In a follow-up post, Trump wrote, “I’ll see her on September 4th or, I won’t see her at all.” He also said she lacked “the mental capacity” to debate.
In response, Harris wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Aug. 3, “It’s interesting how ‘any time, any place’ becomes ‘one specific time, one specific safe space.’”
The statement appeared to reference Trump’s past comments, in which he said he was willing to debate Biden “any time, any place.”
“I’ll be there on September 10th, like he agreed to,” Harris added. “I hope to see him there.”
In reference to the ABC News debate, a Harris campaign spokesperson said Trump was “running scared,” according to Reuters. The spokesperson added the campaign was open to discussing additional debates after the Sept. 10 debate.
This story was originally published August 7, 2024 at 11:15 AM with the headline "Will Harris and Trump debate? Trump suggests it could be in ‘pretty near future’."