Trump pulls out of debate over plan to do it virtually
DONALD TRUMP yesterday pulled out of the second presidential debate after organisers made it virtual, kick-starting a rapid sequence of public negotiations.
Mr Trump objected to the Commission on Presidential Debates announcing that Thursday’s scheduled clash would not be an in-person event.
Mr Trump tested positive for Covid-19 last Friday, and spent several days in hospital.
However, his physician said yesterday that the president had completed his course of therapy for the coronavirus, had remained stable since returning to the White House, and could return to public engagements on Saturday.
Dr. Sean Conley said in a memo released by the White House that Trump had responded “extremely well” to treatment.
Within moments of the news about the debate, Mr Trump went on Fox News to declare the move an attempt to help Joe Biden, his presidential rival and the Democratic nominee.
“I’m not going to waste my time on a virtual debate. That’s not what debating is all about,” Mr Trump said, claiming his campaign had not been consulted.
“You sit behind a computer and do a debate. It’s ridiculous. And then they cut you off whenever they want.”
The row flared up the morning after Mike Pence, the US vice-president, squared off against Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee, in their only debate of the campaign.
Ms Harris branded the White House’s response to the pandemic the “greatest failure” of any US administration in history, frequently speaking directly into the camera to voters at home.
Mr Pence accused Ms Harris of undermining trust in a Covid-19 vaccine and reached for familiar Republican attacks, going after the Biden campaign’s plans for raising taxes and increasing government spending.
Both candidates attended in person the debate in Salt Lake City, Utah, where they were divided by Plexiglass screens and kept 12ft apart.
The Commission’s decision to make the next presidential debate virtual came amid mounting safety concerns, given Mr Trump’s illness.
The president appeared on a televised debate with Mr Biden on September 29. He was confirmed to have contracted coronavirus two days later.
The White House refused to say when the president last tested negative before his positive result, raising fears he may have had the virus for longer than had been publicly disclosed.
The Commission’s announcement that “candi
‘I’m not going to waste my time on a virtual debate’
dates would participate from separate remote locations” is not without precedent. In a 1960 election debate, Richard Nixon was in Los Angeles and John F Kennedy was in New York.
Yet the decision appeared to blindside the campaigns.
Bill Stepien, Trump 2020 campaign manager, said: “For the swamp creatures at the Presidential Debate Commission to now rush to Joe Biden’s defence by unilaterally cancelling an in-person debate is pathetic.”
There then followed a scramble from both campaigns to shape the format of the last two debates.
The Biden c ampaign wanted a town hall format, with voters asking questions.
The Trump campaign said it was ready for two debates if both were delayed by a week to allow Mr Trump to attend in person. But the Biden campaign insisted the long-agreed dates of October 15 and October 22 should stay.
It was later announced that Mr Biden will take part in a town hall forum hosted by ABC News on October 15, the night of what was supposed to be the second debate.
Mr Trump’s apparent unwillingness to change his style to win back voters he needs – particularly women – was on display again on Thursday during his Fox Business interview when he referred to Ms Harris as a “monster”.
It’s not the first time Mr Trump has skipped a debate. During the 2016 Republican primary, he boycotted the last debate before Iowa’s caucuses – a move he later speculated may have contributed to his loss in the state. (© Daily Telegraph, London)