Mr. Biden, 81, set out his own conditions, including no studio audience, to avoid a repeat of his often chaotic debates with political showman Mr. Trump during the 2020 election.
The 77-year-old president, whose campaign is pushing for additional debates in July and August, has set out a completely different vision for a larger venue for “excitement purposes,” but has not changed the schedule. I accepted.
“Donald Trump lost to me twice in debates in 2020. He hasn't appeared in a debate since. Now he's acting like he wants to debate me again. Well, good luck today,'' Biden said in a video on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
“I'll do it twice.”
Biden also trolled Trump over the ongoing hush-money criminal trial in New York, where he has a midweek day off, adding, “I hear you're free on Wednesday.”
Biden announced that he had accepted ABC's invitation, saying, “Trump has said he will arrange his own transportation. He will also bring a plane. He intends to do this for four more years.”
CNN confirmed there would be no audience for the debate, saying it would “allow candidates to make the most of their allotted time.”
Mr. Biden's debate offer is a calculated risk to bring Mr. Trump back into the American fold ahead of the November election in hopes of reversing the Republican's poll lead in a series of battleground states. It seems to indicate that there is.
The Biden campaign is increasingly trying to remind voters of the real face of the mercurial president they defeated in 2020, amid concerns about Trump's “nostalgia.” Second term presidential power and “retaliation”.
Meanwhile, Trump previously said he would discuss his rival “anytime, anywhere” as he sought to portray Biden as elderly and incapable of leadership.
After Biden's challenge, Trump, who avoided debates with his rivals in this year's race for the Republican presidential nomination, said: “I'm ready to rumble!!!” For the proposed June and September debates.
He described Biden as “the worst debater I've ever faced,” adding, “Biden is probably afraid of crowds, but he needs more than one debate and a lot to get excited.” I highly recommend a large venue for this event.”
The 2020 debate between the two candidates was filled with tension, with Biden snapping, “Will you just shut up?” Because President Trump has repeatedly spoken to him.
This time, the Biden campaign appeared to be leaving nothing to chance.
In a letter to the bipartisan U.S. election debates obtained by Agence France-Presse, campaign manager Jen O'Malley Dillon said she would not participate in the three debates scheduled for September and October. He said he would not do so and would instead do so through the press.
He said debates should feature only the candidates and the moderator and avoid having “noisy or disruptive partisans” in the audience.
Candidates' microphones should also be turned off outside of their allotted time, a rule the committee was “unable or unwilling to enforce” in 2020, he said.
There was also no room for a third candidate, and independent challenger Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was ruled out, she said.
In a statement on X, President Kennedy accused President Trump and Biden of “conspiring to lock America into a direct confrontation that 70% of Americans say they don't want.”
“They're trying to exclude me from the debate because they're afraid I'll win.”
Importantly, the Biden campaign has said that the upcoming debate schedule will cause them to miss out on early voters who have been crucial to Democratic hopes in recent elections.
