Trump proposes three debates with Harris; one confirmed

Washington, Aug 9 (IANS) Former US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he had proposed three debates with his Democratic rival Kamala Harris on three separate TV networks.

ABC, one of these networks, has confirmed it will host a debate on September 10, which will be the first between Trump and Harris.Trump said at a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago residence that he had “agreed” to debate Harris three times, with dates and host TV networks — September 4 on Fox, September 10 on NBC and September 25 on ABC. “I look forward to the debates because I think we have to set the record straight,” Trump said.According to reports, Trump mixed up the dates and the correct proposed dates were September 4 on Fox, September 10 on ABC and September 25 on NBC.The former President also said that CBS will host a debate between J.D. Vance, the Republican nominee for Vice President and Tim Walz, the Democratic rival.ABC has confirmed the September 10 debate. The Harris campaign had not commented on the other two proposed debates yet.The September 10 debate on ABC was the second of the two debates Trump and President Joe Biden had settled on. Trump dithered about it after Biden dropped out and the former President said he would agree to a debate in September if it was hosted by Fox, which got him criticized by the Harris campaign. Former Vice President Harris accused him of trying to avoid debating her.The first debate of the 2024 presidential election cycle took place between Biden and Trump on June 27 and it was hosted by CNN. The President’s disastrous performance in the debate ended his re-election bid and he pulled out on July 21 and endorsed Harris.–IANSyrj/sha