CNN, which will host the first presidential debate, reported on Thursday that only President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are eligible to take the stage. The 90-minute debate will take place on June 27 at 9 p.m. in Atlanta, Georgia, and will be moderated by CNN's Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.
What did the candidate say about the decision? Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a statement that CNN illegally agreed to Biden and Trump's request. Biden and Trump argued that Kennedy did not want him to participate in the debate. Last week, the Kennedy campaign filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission, alleging that CNN violated federal election law by fraudulently setting the debate eligibility criteria. Federal election law requires debate organizers to use pre-established, objective criteria when setting the eligibility of candidates to participate in the debate.
What were your qualifications to be on the debate stage? CNN explained that candidates who wanted to run in the debates had to meet the eligibility criteria for the presidency set out in Article II, Section 1 of the United States Constitution, meaning that candidates had to be at least 35 years old and be natural-born citizens of the United States. Candidates also had to file a formal statement identifying themselves as a candidate with the Federal Election Commission. Additionally, CNN said they needed to appear on the ballots of enough states to have a chance at winning the 270 electoral votes needed to be elected president. They also needed to have the support of at least 15 percent of the electorate in polls that CNN deemed sufficiently reliable.
Learn more: Read Leo Briceno's report at The Stew, which gives a crash course on RFK Jr.'s policy positions.
