Trump won’t commit to debate until Harris formally nominated

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s campaign refused to commit to a debate with Kamala Harris after the Democratic candidate challenged the Republican nominee to show up to a previously scheduled face-off.

Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said Thursday night that debate plans “cannot be finalized until Democrats formally decide on their nominee.”

“It would be inappropriate to schedule things with Harris because Democrats very well could still change their minds,” Cheung said in a statement.

The Trump campaign is now saying debates can't be scheduled until the Democratic nominee is official, even though Biden was not "officially" the Dem nominee at the last debate. pic.twitter.com/E9Qm4UmLnn

— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) July 26, 2024

“What happened to ‘any time, any place?’” Harris posted on X in response.

Democrats are poised to virtually nominate Harris and her yet-to-be-named running mate by Aug. 7. She is the only declared Democratic presidential candidate and has received the endorsement of almost every major party figure.

The vice president earlier Thursday said she was “ready to debate Donald Trump” and accused him of “backpedaling” from an agreement for a Sept. 10 forum hosted by ABC News.

“The voters deserve to see the split screen that exists in this race on a debate stage,” Harris told reporters upon returning to Washington from a speech in Houston.

The Sept. 10 debate was one of two that Joe Biden and Trump agreed to before the president ended his reelection bid. Biden dropped out of the race last Sunday and backed Harris to lead the Democratic ticket.

Trump said Tuesday that he was willing to debate Harris more than once, but suggested he wanted an organization other than ABC News to moderate. In the past, he has said he would prefer conservative-leaning Fox News to host.

Harris did not respond when asked Thursday about debating on Fox News.

The June 27 debate between Trump and Biden, hosted by CNN, proved to be a boon for the Republican nominee. The president’s faltering, disjointed performance set off a panic among Democrats about his age and ability to defeat Trump that eventually drove Biden from the race.