August 26th 2024.
As the highly-anticipated September 10th debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump draws closer, their respective campaigns have found themselves embroiled in a heated debate over whether the candidates' microphones should be muted when it's not their turn to speak. This is a common point of contention in presidential campaigns, but the stakes are especially high this time around, as both Harris and Trump are under pressure to deliver a strong performance in Philadelphia. This is not the first time a debate has had such a significant impact on the race, as the first debate during this campaign ultimately led to President Joe Biden dropping out of the race.
On Sunday night, Trump took to his Truth Social network to voice his concerns about the upcoming debate. He questioned whether he should even bother showing up for the debate on US network ABC, citing his displeasure with the network's Sunday show and their panel of what he called "Trump haters." He urged his followers to "stay tuned" for further updates.
The current dispute centers on the issue of muting microphones when a candidate is not speaking, a condition that was accepted by both Biden and Trump for their June debate hosted by CNN. Both sides are accusing the other of trying to manipulate the system in order to protect their candidate. Biden's team initially made microphone muting a condition for agreeing to any debates this year, but some members of his team now regret that decision, as they believe it shielded voters from hearing Trump's outbursts during the debate. However, it's unclear if this would have made a difference, as Biden's performance was widely considered to be disastrous.
Harris' campaign is now pushing for the microphones to be left on at all times, according to her spokesman Brian Fallon. He also took a jab at Trump's team, stating that they prefer the muted microphone because they don't believe their candidate can act "presidential" for a full 90 minutes. Harris, on the other hand, is prepared to handle Trump's constant lies and interruptions in real time and does not want to rely on a mute button. In response, Trump's spokesman Jason Miller claimed that the Republican nominee had accepted the ABC debate under the same terms as the CNN debate, but also alleged that Harris' team had requested a seated debate with notes and opening statements.
Trump himself weighed in on the debate negotiations during a recent stop in the Washington area. When asked if he wanted the microphones muted, he responded, "I'd rather have it probably on." He went on to say that he didn't like the muted microphones during his last debate with Biden, but that it ultimately worked out fine. He also noted that both sides had agreed to the same rules and specifications for the September 10th debate with Harris. When asked about his debate preparation, Trump nonchalantly stated that he wasn't preparing, as he believes he's been preparing for debates his whole life.
One factor complicating the negotiations this year is the fact that the debates are being organized by individual networks instead of the bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, which usually handles these matters privately. Historically, microphones have been left unmuted for both candidates during televised presidential debates. However, after the first Biden-Trump debate devolved into a shouting match, the debate commission announced that the microphones would be muted when candidates were not recognized to speak for their October 2020 debate. This move was widely praised, as the second debate with the muted microphones was seen as more substantive than the earlier matchup.
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