Donald Trump seemed to have backed away from his earlier commitment to debate with Vice-President Kamala Harris, saying he “probably” will debate but he “can also make a case for not doing it.”
In an interview with Fox News Channel, the Republican politician was pressed several times about committing to debating Harris.
The former US president had been eager to debate President Joe Biden when he was the Democratic nominee after months of suggesting that Biden was not mentally up for the matchup. But after Biden dropped out of the race, Harris became the Democratic presidential candidate.
Since then Trump has been questioning the terms of the original debate he agreed to with Biden. He has suggested the Sept. 10 debate on ABC News should be moved to a different network, calling ABC “fake news.”
Last week, in a phone call with reporters, Trump was asked if he’d commit to debating Harris at least once. He responded: “Oh yes, absolutely. I’d want to,” and said there was an obligation to debate.
In a new interview on Monday, July 29, host Laura Ingraham repeatedly pressed Trump on whether he would commit to a debate.
“I want to do a debate. But I also can say this. Everybody knows who I am. And now people know who she is,” Trump said.
Trump eventually said, “The answer is yes, I’ll probably end up debating.”
He went on for a minute, saying any debates need to be held before early voting starts in states, and then added, “The answer is yes, but I can also make a case for not doing it.”