Kamala Harris’s campaign team has mocked Donald Trump after he declined to take part in a second televised presidential debate with the vice president on CNN this fall.
Harris has agreed to take part in a second debate against her Republican opponent on October 23 ahead of this year’s presidential election, but her opponent has declined to do so, saying it is “too late.”
Harris’s campaign team, which brands itself online as Kamala HQ, took to X, formerly Twitter, to mock the former president for refusing to take part. It posted a video of the Republican, captioned with three chicken head emojis, talking on numerous occasions about his first debate with President Joe Biden, which was also hosted by CNN. Trump says the debate was “very fair” and that he gained “a whole new level of respect” for the broadcaster.
It then cuts with a record scratch to Trump’s recent comments in North Carolina in which he declined the invitation.
“It’s just too late,” Trump told his supporters at a rally in Wilmington this week. He added that “voting has already started,” which is true in several states that allow early in-person voting.
“She’s done one debate, I’ve done two, it’s too late to do another,” he said, referring to his debate with incumbent Biden earlier in summer, following which the president dropped out of the race and endorsed Harris.
The first debate of this election cycle between Biden and Trump was hosted on CNN and the second, which took place on September 10, was hosted by ABC News.
Kamala HQ also pointed out that Trump took part in a final debate during the 2020 election cycle on October 22, 2020—just a day earlier than the October 23 date proposed by CNN.
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Harris herself also took to her own X account to challenge Trump to take part in the debate.
“I will gladly accept a second presidential debate on October 23. I hope @realDonaldTrump will join me,” she wrote.
Harris and running mate Tim Walz’s campaign chair, Jen O’Malley Dillon, said it would be “unprecedented in modern history for there to just be one general election debate.”
“Debates offer a unique chance for voters to see the candidates side-by-side and take stock of their competing visions for America,” she said. “Donald Trump should have no problem agreeing to this debate. It is the same format and setup as the CNN debate he attended and said he won in June, when he praised CNN’s moderators, rules, and ratings.”
