At a large campaign event in Georgia on Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris — now the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee for this year’s race — again pushed for herself and Republican nominee Donald Trump to meet on a debate stage. Though there was another general election debate scheduled when the expected Democratic pick was still President Joe Biden, the Republican and his team have waffled.
“Well Donald, I do hope you’ll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage,” Harris said. “Because as the saying goes, if you’ve got something to say, say it to my face.” The crowd cheered in support.
The originally scheduled debate was supposed to take place in September and be hosted by ABC News. The first, the contents of which spurred weeks of scrutiny on President Joe Biden’s advanced age that led to him stepping aside from the 2024 election, was CNN’s doing.
Some on Harris’ side seized on the Trump team’s sudden hesitation, calling it a sign of fear on Trump’s part. Specifically, a spokesperson for Trump threw cold water on the idea of planning yet for any debate with Harris, claiming there was still too much uncertainty about who Democrats would actually put forward for this year’s election.
In reality, it very quickly became clear that Harris was the only serious contender after Biden’s withdrawal and endorsement of her. She already assembled the stated support from Democratic convention delegates to get the nomination in short order, and there was no serious challenge within the party to her candidacy. Instead, a slew of party figures who might have challenged her opted instead to endorse her rising campaign.
Donald, I do hope you’ll reconsider meeting me on the debate stage.
Because, as the saying goes, if you’ve got something to say, say it to my face. pic.twitter.com/fkL9ZYOY3X
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) July 30, 2024
