Vice President Kamala Harris has agreed to debate the future running mate of former President Donald Trump, marking a significant moment in the lead-up to the 2024 election. A Biden campaign official confirmed the decision to CNN on Thursday, expressing readiness for the engagement.
According to CNN on Friday, May 17, 2024, the Biden campaign has accepted CBS News’ invitation to participate in a vice-presidential debate. The debate is proposed to take place in a studio on one of two dates: July 23 or August 13.
“We look forward to the Trump campaign accepting one of these dates so that the full debate calendar for this campaign can be set,” the official added, emphasizing their readiness.
The proposed date of July 23 is notable as it would be less than a week after the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, giving Trump’s newly announced running mate limited preparation time before facing Harris.
Trump, in characteristic fashion, took to his social media platform, Truth Social, on Friday to announce his campaign’s acceptance of an invitation for his vice-presidential pick to participate in a debate hosted by Fox News. He urged Harris to agree to the Fox-hosted debate, setting the stage for a potential scheduling conflict.
However, the Biden campaign has indicated that Harris will not participate in the Fox-hosted debate, citing her prior acceptance of CBS’ invitation. Biden campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon had earlier laid out criteria for selecting debate hosts, specifying that debates should be hosted by any broadcast organization that had hosted a Republican primary debate in 2016 or a Democratic primary debate in 2020. This aims to ensure neither campaign can claim the hosting organization is biased.
“Presidential and vice-presidential debates should be hosted by any broadcast organization that hosted a Republican primary debate in 2016 in which Donald Trump participated, and a Democratic primary debate in 2020 in which President Biden participated – so neither campaign can assert that the sponsoring organization is obviously unacceptable,” O’Malley Dillon explained.
The Democratic National Committee had previously decided not to allow Fox News to host any Democratic primary debates in 2020, citing reports of a mutually beneficial relationship between Fox and the Trump administration.
Amid these preparations, Trump hinted at his strategy regarding the vice-presidential announcement. In an interview aired on Thursday, Trump mentioned there was a “pretty good chance” he would reveal his running mate at the Republican convention in Milwaukee, aligning with traditional campaign tactics for maximum impact.
The decision by Harris to engage in a debate with Trump’s future running mate underscores the importance both campaigns place on these televised events as crucial moments to sway undecided voters and energize their bases.
With the debate dates set to be confirmed soon, political analysts and voters alike will be keenly observing how these plans unfold. The anticipated debate between Harris and Trump’s vice-presidential pick promises to be a critical event in the 2024 campaign, providing voters with a direct comparison between the two candidates’ visions and policies.
