- Written by Anthony Zurcher
- North American correspondent
image source, Getty Images
US President Joe Biden said on Friday that he would be “happy” to face Donald Trump in a debate before November's election.
Biden answered questions from Howard Stern during an hour-long interview on the satellite radio network SiriusXM.
“It's nice to be able to argue with him,” he said. “I'll be somewhere. I don't know when.”
Trump campaign adviser Chis Lacivita responded on X/Twitter: “Okay, let's get ready!”
Traditionally, election year presidential debates are organized by bipartisan committees and scheduled for the fall.
Last November, the commission announced that the 2024 presidential debates would be held at three universities: Texas, Utah and Virginia, with dates set for September and October.
Mr. Biden had no intention of participating in such debates before Friday's remarks, saying in March that his desire to join Mr. Trump on stage “depended on what he did.”
The president's comments on Friday were made without advance notice from his campaign and may have been made on a whim.
In recent weeks, Mr. Trump and campaign representatives have been pressuring Mr. Biden to hold debates earlier and more frequently than scheduled debates.
image source, Getty Images
At a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, Trump appeared on stage near an empty lectern holding a sign that read “Anytime, Anywhere, Anywhere.”
Trump's tactics represent a reversal of sorts, as he and Republican officials have previously accused the debate commission, which also selects the debate moderators, of being biased in favor of Democrats.
The Republican National Committee withdrew its involvement in the debate committee in April 2022, raising questions about whether Republican candidates will participate in 2024.
The former president refused to attend any of his party's five primary debates during this election cycle, which ran from August to January, and Republican voters clearly have a lead in opinion polls. He supported his campaign and pointed to the debate as proof that it was unnecessary.
He went on to win all but one of his contests for the Republican nomination, becoming the party's presumptive nominee by March. Biden and Trump debated twice during the 2020 presidential campaign.
The former was particularly controversial, with the then-president frequently interrupting Biden and Fox News debate moderator Chris Wallace.
A third debate was scheduled, but Trump was diagnosed with the coronavirus shortly after the second debate, so it was changed to a virtual event and Trump withdrew.
The first televised US presidential debate took place in 1960 between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy, and is largely credited with helping Kennedy win the White House.
Since 1976, candidates from the two major parties have held at least one debate each presidential election year.
