ABC News is part of a collective of prominent news organizations, including the top five broadcast and cable networks, major wire services, print outlets, and radio stations. In an open letter, these organizations are urging presidential candidates to publicly commit to participating in televised debates leading up to the general election.
The letter bears the signatures of prominent news organizations, including ABC News, CBS News, CNN, NBCUniversal News Group, and FOX News Media. Other signatories include The Associated Press, C-SPAN, NewsNation, Noticias Univision (Univision Network News), NPR, PBS NewsHour, and USA TODAY.
The undersigned national news organizations have issued a letter urging the presumptive presidential nominees to publicly commit to participating in general election debates before November’s election. The letter, published on Sunday, emphasizes the importance of these debates as the contours of the 2024 general election become clearer.
Amid an election cycle filled with uncertainty surrounding the practice of debates, a longstanding tradition in American campaigns, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have taken an unusual stance.
Trump, who chose not to participate in any of the four Republican National Committee-sanctioned 2024 primary election debates and withdrew from one of his three debates with Biden in 2020, has been vocal in urging Biden to take part in the three general debates scheduled for this fall. His campaign reiterated this stance on Sunday.
According to spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt, President Trump has made it abundantly clear that he is ready and willing to engage in a debate with Joe Biden under any circumstances. The invitation for debates is once again extended to Biden, urging him to make a commitment.
The Biden campaign has raised concerns about the organization of these debates by the Commission on Presidential Debates. They have expressed that the nonpartisan group, which has been sponsoring these events since the 1980s, has been unclear about their ability to conduct a “fair” debate with Trump.
In April 2022, the Republican National Committee unanimously decided to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates.
The Biden campaign has chosen not to provide a comment regarding the recent letter, however, President Biden has previously downplayed Trump’s enthusiasm to share a stage with him.
In February, Biden remarked to reporters, “If I were him, I would want to debate me, too. He doesn’t have anything else to do.”
General election debates hold a significant place in American democracy, with a long-standing tradition dating back to 1976. These debates have played a crucial role in shaping every presidential election over the past 50 years. Drawing in millions of viewers, they serve as a platform for candidates to engage in a spirited exchange of ideas, vying for the support of the American people. The media organizations emphasized the importance of these debates in a letter, urging their continuation.
The letter concludes by stating that amidst the highly polarized time, Americans can agree on one thing: the stakes of this election are exceptionally high. It emphasizes the importance of the candidates engaging in debates with each other and presenting their visions for the future of the nation before the American people.
The Democratic National Committee, fully backing Biden, chose not to organize any primary election debates this time around, despite the pleas from his underdog rivals. It is worth noting that there has never been a case where an incumbent president participated in a primary debate, even when faced with formidable primary opponents, since the inception of the first modern debate in 1948.
President Trump’s campaign is actively advocating for additional general election debates against Biden. In a letter addressed to the Commission on Presidential Debates, the campaign’s senior advisers emphasize the need for “much earlier” and “more” debates than the initial proposal. They argue that with voting commencing earlier and earlier, it is crucial to provide ample opportunities for the candidates to engage in meaningful discussions and present their visions for the country.
According to a letter written by top Trump campaign advisers Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita, voting is starting earlier and earlier. In fact, in the 2020 election, tens of millions of Americans had already cast their votes by the time of the first debate.
“It’s simply too late,” the Commission’s critics wrote, highlighting the potential number of votes that Americans would have already cast by the proposed 2024 calendar dates.
In 2020, the two American candidates felt that they were deprived of a meaningful and vigorous debate. They believed that the debate commission had acquiesced to the Biden campaign’s request due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
In 2020, Biden and Trump participated in only two debates. Unfortunately, a third debate that was scheduled to take place was canceled when the former president decided not to participate. The cancellation occurred because the debate format had been changed from an in-person event to a virtual one due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Trump went on the offensive, criticizing the commission for its proposed changes aimed at enforcing rules and reducing interruptions during the remaining presidential debates. He made it clear that he would not accept any of their modifications.
The RNC made the decision in 2022 to withdraw from debates organized by the commission. Candidates are required to commit to not taking part in these debates. The national party has not yet changed its stance on this matter.
The commission has revealed its intention to schedule the inaugural debate on September 16th at Texas State University, followed by the second debate on October 1st at Virginia State University, and the third debate on October 9th at The University of Utah in Salt Lake City. Additionally, a vice presidential debate is set to take place on September 25th at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania.