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Trump reaffirms plan to hold debate with Harris Sept. 10

In a Tuesday post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said the debate would go on, carried by "ABC FAKE NEWS, by far the nastiest and most unfair newscaster in the business."
This combination of photos shows Vice President Kamala Harris, left, and former President Donald Trump.
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Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he planned to go forward with a debate against Vice President Kamala Harris, just a day after he suggested he might back out of the ABC News event.

In a Tuesday post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said the debate would go on, carried by "ABC FAKE NEWS, by far the nastiest and most unfair newscaster in the business."

"Harris would not agree to the Fox News Debate on September 4th, but that date will be held open in case she changes her mind," Trump wrote.

Trump said the parties had not yet agreed to a possible third debate, which he said would be carried on "NBC FAKE NEWS."

The two presidential campaigns have also sparred over details of upcoming debates. The Harris campaign has sought to ensure that microphones stay on during the debate. At the June debate between Trump and President Joe Biden, CNN shut off the microphones when candidates were not speaking. Those debate rules were agreed upon by the two candidates.

On Tuesday a Harris campaign spokesperson told Scripps News "Both candidates have publicly made clear their willingness to debate with unmuted mics for the duration of the debate to fully allow for substantive exchanges between the candidates."

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This year's fall presidential debate calendar is more uncertain than previous years because the nonpartisan Presidential Debate Commission is no longer organizing and hosting, following opposition from the campaigns. Instead, individual television networks are pitching debates directly to the campaigns.