Both candidates express willingness to engage in debates
President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden have both expressed their willingness to engage in debates as the general election approaches. This marks a shift in Trump’s position, as he previously rejected calls to debate his challengers in the GOP primary race.
During a campaign event in Nevada, Trump stated, “I’d like to debate him now because we should debate. We should debate for the good of the country.” Biden, in response to Trump’s comments, told reporters, “Immediately? Well, if I were him, I’d want to debate me, too. He’s got nothing else to do.”
Uncertain outlook for general election debates
Despite Trump’s willingness to debate, the outlook for general election debates remains uncertain. The Republican National Committee withdrew from the Commission on Presidential Debates in 2022, and Trump himself has criticized the organization, calling it “corrupt.”
“They’re totally corrupt. They’re totally Democrat-leaning, that’s being nice when I use the word leaning,” Trump stated in December. “They are totally corrupt, and they’re terrible. With that being said, I would do 20 debates even if it was organized by them. I’ll do as many debates as they want. I’d do a debate every night with this guy. But he’ll never show up to a debate.”
Scheduled debates and candidates’ response
The Commission on Presidential Debates has so far scheduled three general election debates. These debates are set to take place on September 16 at Texas State University in San Marcos, October 1 at Virginia State University in Petersburg, and October 9 at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.
Neither Trump nor Biden have publicly agreed to participate in these debates. However, Trump’s campaign argues that his significant lead in GOP polls frees him of any obligation to debate distant challengers.