Kamala Harris challenges Donald Trump to debate with mics on the 'whole time'

WASHINGTON, DC: Vice President Kamala Harris, has issued a bold challenge to her Republican opponent, Donald Trump.

In a call for transparency, Harris urged Trump to debate her with their microphones kept on throughout the entire event.

The two candidates are set to face off in a debate hosted by ABC News on September 10, marking the first time they will meet on stage since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race.

Kamala Harris questions Donald Trump's debate confidence

Kamala Harris took to social media platform X to question Donald Trump's confidence and the decision-making of his campaign advisors.

"Donald Trump is surrendering to his advisors who won't allow him to debate with a live microphone," she posted on X (formerly Twitter).

"If his own team doesn't have confidence in him, the American people definitely can’t," Harris noted.

She further challenged Trump by stating, "We are running for President of the United States. Let’s debate in a transparent way with the microphones on the whole time."

The challenge came in response to a thread by Washington Post journalist Josh Dawsey, who outlined the debate rules that Trump had accepted but Harris' campaign had not yet agreed to.

The rules proposed by ABC News suggest that microphones would only be live for the candidate whose turn it is to speak and muted when the other candidate is supposed to be silent.

Donald Trump prefers open mics during debates

Despite Kamala Harris' remarks, Donald Trump has expressed his preference for having his microphone on at all times.

He has voiced his dissatisfaction with the mic being muted during his previous debate against then-contender Biden.

However, Trump ripped into Harris, saying, "She can't talk," over wanting to have rules changed and he said they don't matter to him, adding he would rather like it "preferred on."

Kamala Harris' campaign still in discussions about presidential debate mic rules

Kamala Harris' campaign is still in discussions with ABC News regarding the debate's microphone rules. An email from ABC to campaign officials, obtained by The Hill, indicated that microphones would only be live for the candidate speaking at any given time.

Harris' campaign spokesperson, Brian Fallon, clarified the campaign's position on X. "The memo sent by ABC is a draft set of rules that both campaigns need to sign off on and indicate agreement," he said.

"We have not done so because we think both candidates have expressed a clear desire to have hot mics. Not clear why Trump staff is overruling their principal, who should be capable of making up his own mind," Fallon added.

"If you mute the mics, it’s less a debate than alternating speeches. Debates have traditionally included interjections," he wrote in one more separate post.

Harris participated in her first major interview since becoming the Democratic nominee, speaking with CNN's Dana Bash.

The Democratic vice-presidential nominee, Tim Walz, and the Republican vice-presidential nominee, JD Vance, have also agreed to a debate on October 1, which will be hosted by CBS News.