(UnitedHeadlines.com) – On April 14, 12 major news organizations called for President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump to commit to taking part in three debates scheduled for the fall.
In the letter sent by news organizations, they said it was too early to send invitations to the candidates for debates but not too early for them to publicly state their commitment to attending the debates. In a statement, the 12 news organizations said, “The stakes of this election are exceptionally high,” adding there is “no substitute for the candidates debating.”
The letter was signed by CBS News, USA TODAY, ABC News, FOX News Media, CNN, NewsNation, C-SPAN, NBCUniversal News Group, NPR, PBS NewsHour, Noticias Univision (Univision Network News), and The Associated Press.
In 2022, the Republican National Committee voted unanimously to ban the participation of Republican presidential nominees in debates put on by the Commission on Presidential Debates, the sponsor of the general election debates since 1988.
Despite the ban, Trump campaign managers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles wrote in a letter that Trump is willing to participate in debates. Though they did not address the ban, they did request the Commission on Presidential Debates be impartial and fair.
Biden has declined to commit to the debates, as Biden and his team have concerns about whether the Commission on Presidential Debates will enforce its rules against Trump. When asked on March 8 if he would commit to debating Trump, Biden stated, “It depends on his behavior.”
The call for candidates to commit to debates comes as Trump has called on Biden to debate, and Biden has not yet answered. In a December interview, Trump suggested 10 debates be held between the two candidates. In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that “Biden can’t debate,” adding that he cannot “put two sentences together.” Trump had two podiums set up on stage for his April 13 rally in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania. While he spoke from one, the other had a sign, “Anytime. Anywhere. Anyplace.”
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