Donald Trump will debate Kamala Harris on Sept. 4, the former said in a post on Truth Social late on Friday.
“Rules will be similar to the rules of my debate with Sleepy Joe, who has been treated horribly by his party, but with a full arena audience,” Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s candidate for president said, referring to President Joe Biden, who has since dropped his reelection bid.
Harris Ready
The post was removed for a few minutes before being reposted, with the Republican candidate deleting his proposal for a “major” town hall gathering on the same date if Harris was “unwilling or unable to debate”.
Harris, the vice-president, had responded last month that she was “ready” after Fox News proposed the presidential debate between the two candidates on Sept. 17.
After Biden dropped out of the race on July 21 and backed Harris, Trump said he would not debate her because she was not the official candidate.
Barack’s Backing
As proof of her lack of support, he added that former President Barack Obama had yet to endorse her. But Obama did so a day later, and on Friday, she secured the delegate votes needed to clinch the Democratic nomination.
Biden had bowed out after a disastrous performance in a debate against Trump in June on CNN. A second debate had been scheduled for September, this time on ABC Television but with Biden out of the race, it was inevitable the debate would now include Harris given that she had also won the Democratic nomination for president.
Donald Trump has questioned Harris’ racial origins, claiming that she had recently “turned black” and that he had been unaware of her bi racial origins. At an event with Black journalists in Chicago, he wondered whether she was India or black.
His comments evoked a strong backlash with the White House describing them as “repulsive and insulting.”
With Reuters inputs
