Topline
Former President Donald Trump reiterated his call Monday to debate President Joe Biden, but it’s unclear whether Biden or the Republican National Committee will agree to allow the debates to move forward, following a major shakeup at the RNC and a split between the committee and the longtime organizer of presidential debates.
Key Facts
Trump is willing to debate Biden “anytime, anywhere, anyplace,” he declared Monday on Truth Social, writing that the two candidates “owe it to our country.”
The post suggests Trump is open to the debate schedule proposed by the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, which has sponsored all general election presidential and vice presidential debates since the organization’s inception in 1987 and was heavily criticized by Trump and RNC during the 2020 presidential campaign.
When asked whether Trump would be willing to participate in the CPD debates, his spokesperson Steven Cheung told Forbes “he wants to debate, period.”
The organization was co-sponsored by both parties until the Republican National Committee in 2022 voted to withdraw its participation, echoing Trump’s criticism during the 2020 campaign that the commission chose moderators who were overly critical of him.
Trump also blasted the commission’s decision to mute candidates’ mics during the final debate after Trump repeatedly interrupted Biden in earlier debates, and Trump pulled out of the second debate when the commission said it would be held virtually due to Covid-19 concerns.
Biden, meanwhile, has not committed to debating Trump, telling reporters earlier this month “it depends on his behavior” (the Biden campaign did not respond to Forbes’ request for comment).
Tangent
Trump boycotted the Republican primary debates in August and December, both of which were sanctioned by the RNC, citing his strong polling lead. Future debates were canceled when only Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley met the qualifications and Haley refused to debate unless Trump participated, leaving DeSantis as the only qualifying candidate willing to participate.
What To Watch For
The CPD announced in November it will hold the first presidential debate on Sept. 16 at Texas State University. The first vice presidential debate is slated for Sept. 25 at Lafayette College. The second presidential debate is scheduled for Oct. 1 at Virginia State University and the third is set for Oct. 9 at the University of Utah.
What We Don’t Know
Whether the Republican National Committee will endorse Trump’s participation in the CPD debates. The CPD has yet to announce the format or moderators for the debate. The RNC, when asked whether it would support Trump in a CPD debate, directed Forbes to his Monday Truth Social post.
Key Background
Trump and Biden clinched their respective parties’ nominations on March 12, making the 2024 primary season one of the shortest in decades and setting the stage for a historic rematch between the two. Trump’s win allowed him to effectively merge his campaign with the RNC, which voted unanimously days before Trump won the nomination to install a new slate of his hand-picked leaders, including his daughter-in-law Lara Trump and former North Carolina GOP Chair Michael Whatley as co-chairs. Trump’s co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita and his senior campaign adviser James Blair are also working with the committee in an advisory capacity, while maintaining their roles in the campaign. The committee subsequently laid off more than 60 staffers in what a Trump campaign official told CBS was an effort to “completely streamline the operation” and “eliminate redundancies” between the campaign and the RNC.
