Notwithstanding our concerns, we understand that Donald Trump is a risk to skip the debate altogether, as he has threatened to do previously, if we do not accede to his preferred format. We do not want to jeopardize the debate. For this reason, we accept the full set of rules proposed by ABC, including muted microphones."
Vice President Harris, a former prosecutor, will be fundamentally disadvantaged by this format, which will serve to shield Donald Trump from direct exchanges with the Vice President. We suspect this is the primary reason for his campaign’s insistence on muted microphones,
ABC News has offered assurances to the Harris campaign that if there is significant cross talk between Harris and Trump, the network may choose to turn on the mics so that the public can understand what is happening, the moderator would discourage either candidate from interrupting constantly and the moderator would also work to explain to viewers what is being said, according to the source familiar,
We accepted the full set of rules proposed by ABC, including muted microphones,
When I looked at the hostility of that, I said, ‘Why am I doing it? Let’s do it with another network.’ I want to do it,
Americans want to hear both candidates present their competing visions to the voters, unburdened by what has been,
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 — but it appears Donald Trump is letting his handlers overrule him. Sad!”
Why would I do the Debate against Kamala Harris on that network?”
We suspect Trump’s team has not even told their boss about this dispute because it would be too embarrassing to admit they don’t think he can handle himself against Vice President Harris without the benefit of a mute button,
Enough with the games. We accepted the ABC debate under the exact same terms as the CNN debate,
I think this is true with a lot of people, but they don't say it: I've been prepared for this debate my whole life,
She's changed every policy. That's why she doesn't want to debate because she doesn't know what she's changed every policy. I think there are 14 changes she made. It's a disgrace."
You can't sit in a log cabin like Mitt Romney. Did you remember he sat there for four weeks at a log cabin, didn't talk to anybody, and then he came out, he couldn't speak? You can't do that,
She's either not smart enough to do them, or something's wrong,
We can't go another four years with a dumb president. We can't do it,
The vice president is preparing to go head-to-head with Donald Trump in just one week. She’s ready to deal with Trump’s constant lies and interruptions in real time,
Harris’ prosecutorial debating style has typically fared well in creating off-the-cuff, and sometimes viral, moments on the national stage the last several years, whether she was debating former Vice President Mike Pence behind a plexiglass, pandemic-era partition or sharing the stage with almost a dozen other Democrats. She could be hoping to create more notable moments at next week’s debate,
Do you remember this?”
We will continue every single minute of the next 60 days to ensure that every voter understands that's who Kamala Harris is,
Moderators will seek to enforce timing agreements and ensure a civilized discussion,