Harris campaign mocks Trump's response to CNN's deadline for another debate, says he wants 'to hide'
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Kamala Harris’ campaign has hit back at Donald Trump after he declined CNN’s invitation for a debate with the vice president ahead of the upcoming November election.
The former president’s refusal to join Harris for another presidential debate has sparked a fierce response from the Harris campaign, accusing him of avoiding a crucial opportunity to present his vision to the voters.
Donald Trump rejects CNN invitation, cites previous debates
On Thursday, October 10, Donald Trump took to Truth Social to announce his decision to skip the proposed CNN debate as he claimed he had already won two previous debates.
"I won the last two debates, one with crooked Joe, the other with lyin' Kamala," he said.
"I accepted the Fox-News invitation to debate Kamala on September 4th, but she turned it down," Trump added.
He argued there was no point in another presidential debate as voting has already begun, and Harris had made clear she would not deviate from President Joe Biden’s policies.
“There will be no rematch!” Trump declared, adding, “Kamala stated clearly, yesterday, that she would not do anything different than Joe Biden, so there is nothing to debate.”
Trump also cited his strong poll numbers, particularly in swing states, as another reason for declining the CNN invitation.
Hours after turning down CNN’s offer, Trump declined another invitation from Fox News for a debate before the November election.
Harris campaign's criticism of Donald Trump’s decision
The Harris campaign released a sharp statement condemning Donald Trump’s decision to reject CNN's invitation for the debate.
Jen O’Malley Dillon, the Harris campaign chair criticized the 78-year-old politician for denying the American people a final opportunity to see the candidates side by side.
“Donald Trump’s refusal to join Vice President Harris on the debate stage again is a disservice to the American people,” said Dillon.
“They deserve to see the candidates one last time before casting their ballots to compare their vastly different visions for America,” she added.
Donald Trump accused of avoiding scrutiny
O’Malley Dillon further criticized Donald Trump for avoiding the traditional pre-election 60 minutes interview, opting instead to stay within the conservative media circles.
“Trump may want to hide from the voters, but Vice President Harris welcomes the opportunity to share her vision for a New Way Forward for the country,” she said.
NEW >> Harris accepts CNN Town Hall invite. JOD slams Trump ducking CNN debate as "disservice to the American people."
— Ian Sams (@IanSams) October 10, 2024
"It is clear Trump would rather cocoon himself in safe spaces and avoid real questions"
"Trump fears another debate where VP Harris would hold him accountable" pic.twitter.com/tITa2jwjUk
In contrast to the Republican presidential candidate, the Harris campaign announced that the vice president had accepted CNN’s invitation for a live, televised town hall on October 23 in Pennsylvania, according to Deadline.
