Former President Donald Trump said it’s Sept. 4 or nothing in the debate back-and-forth with presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
By Tom Ozimek
(Left) Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House in Washington on March 18, 2024. (Right) Former President Donald Trump in Mason City, Iowa, on Jan. 5, 2024. (Anna Moneymaker; Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Former President Donald Trump said he’s prepared to debate Vice President Kamala Harris on Sept. 4 on Fox News, but the vice president declined and insisted on the Sept. 10 debate on ABC, in line with the earlier debate arrangement with President Joe Biden.
Trump said in a post on social media on Aug. 3 that, since Biden has dropped out of the race, their arrangement for a Sept. 10 debate on ABC no longer holds. Instead, Trump proposed a Sept. 4 debate against Harris in Pennsylvania, hosted by Fox News.
Harris reacted to Trump’s message in a post on X, saying that she’ll “be there on September 10th, like he agreed to. I hope to see him there.”
This prompted an ultimatum from Trump.
“I’ll see her on September 4th or, I won’t see her at all,” he wrote in a follow-up post on Truth Social.
The former president said he sees the Sept. 4 debate as essentially a replacement of the previously scheduled Sept. 10 event, which “has been terminated” because Biden dropped out from the 2024 presidential race and endorsed Harris as the Democratic Party nominee.
After Biden announced his withdrawal, Trump called for a change to the Sept. 10 debate, saying in a post on Truth Social that it should be held on Fox News instead of ABC.
In his latest Aug. 3 post, Trump explained that he’s in litigation against ABC and that holding a debate on that network would represent a “conflict of interest.”
The former president also proposed that the moderators of the Sept. 4 debate would be Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, and the debate rules will be similar to those agreed to in the now defunct debate against Biden, “but with a full arena audience.”
Trump’s June 27 debate against Biden on CNN in Atlanta was held with no studio audience.
Harris said on July 25 that she had agreed to debate Trump at the previously agreed upon Sept. 10 debate, while accusing Trump of trying to back out of that earlier agreement.
There has been speculation about whether a Trump–Harris debate would even take place, with the former president hinting repeatedly that there would be, although he remained noncommittal. His Aug. 3 proposal for the Sept. 4 marks the first time he has made a firm commitment, while his follow-up ultimatum suggests a debate between the two is unlikely.
During a press call last week, Trump responded to a reporter’s question about how important it was to debate Harris and if he’d be willing to debate on ABC.
“Well I haven’t agreed to anything,” he said on the call. “I agreed to a debate with Joe Biden, but I want to debate her and she’ll be no different, because they have the same policies. I think debating is important for a presidential race, I really do. … I think if you’re the Democrat nominee or the Republican nominee you really have an obligation to debate, so I think it’s very important.”
Reporters asked Harris at Joint Base Andrews if she would be willing to do the debate on Fox News instead of ABC but she walked away before giving an answer.
In an interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, Trump said he would “probably” end up debating Harris but also said he could “make a case for not doing it.”
Trump said he wanted to do the debate but argued that there wasn’t a pressing need for one given that he and his positions are well-known, as is Harris and her positions.
“The answer is yes, I’ll probably end up debating,” he said.
Harris has earned more than a majority of votes from all convention delegates and will formally become the party’s nominee after voting closes on Aug. 5, Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Jaime Harrison said on Aug. 2, noting that he’s “so proud.”
“I am so honored to be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States,” Harris said in a statement on X. “I will officially accept the nomination next week.”
Chase Smith contributed to this report. This article has been updated to include Harris’ reaction to Trump’s debate proposal, and the former president’s subsequent ultimatum.