Donald Trump has announced his decision to withdraw from a scheduled September debate with Vice President Kamala Harris on ABC and proposed moving the debate to Fox News. This move makes it increasingly unlikely for the candidates to have a face-off on stage before the November election. Trump stated in posts on Truth Social that he terminated the agreement for the Sept. 10 ABC debate because Democratic President Joe Biden, whom he was initially set to face, withdrew from the race after a poor performance in their first debate. He now plans to participate in a Fox News event in Pennsylvania on Sept. 4 with rules similar to his debate with Biden but with a full audience instead of a mostly empty studio. If Harris does not agree to the new network and date, Trump mentioned he would participate in a “major Town Hall” with Fox News instead. A spokesperson for Harris, Michael Tyler, accused Trump of trying to back out of the debate and seeking refuge on Fox News.
It remains uncertain whether ABC will transform its Sept. 10 event into a Harris town hall due to Trump’s absence. Tyler confirmed that Harris is committed to the time slot and is determined to address a prime-time national audience. Trump has been indecisive about debating with Harris since she joined the presidential race. While he previously expressed a sense of obligation to debate, he also mentioned in a recent Fox News interview that Americans already knew everything about both candidates. Harris has urged Trump to honor the commitment he made when Biden was still in the race and even challenged him to confront her directly.
In his Truth Social posts, Trump mentioned his ongoing litigation against ABC News as a reason for his withdrawal from the network’s debate, citing it as a conflict of interest. Trump sued the network in March following remarks by anchor George Stephanopoulos alleging that Trump was found liable for rape. A New York jury ruled Trump liable for sexually assaulting advice columnist E. Jean Carroll but dismissed her rape claim. However, Trump had agreed to participate in the Sept. 10 debate on ABC two months after filing his lawsuit, as well as the June 27 debate on CNN. The moderators for ABC’s debate are set to be David Muir and Linsey Davis, not Stephanopoulos. Trump has a history of skipping debates, including during the 2024 Republican presidential primary debates.
