“I do not think there should be debates. I do not think the President of the United States has behaved in a way that has any association with truth, evidence, data and facts,” Pelosi, a California Democrat, said. during a press conference on Capitol Hill.
She said she “would not legitimize a conversation” with Trump, “yet another debate in terms of the US presidency.”
Pelosi’s remarks come as the Biden campaign has accused the Trump campaign and Republicans that the former vice president does not want a debate on Trump. After comments from Pelosi, Biden and his campaign made it clear that he still intends to debate Trump.
The House of Representatives spokesman said Thursday that during the debates, Trump “is likely to act in a way that undermines the dignity of the presidency. He does that every day.”
“I think he will also downplay what the debates are about,” Pelosi said. “And they should not be about guilt on the part of someone who has no respect for the office he holds, let alone the democratic process.”
She pushed the idea of instead taking the two candidates their own stage and answering questions separately.
Asked later on Thursday on MSNBC if he would consider not debating Trump, Biden replied: “No. As long as the Commission (on presidential debates) goes straight and narrow as they have, I will debate him.”
“I know for sure, I’ll be a fact check on the floor while I debate him,” he added.
Responding to Pelosi’s comments, Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates said the campaign certainly agreed with the speaker’s views on Trump’s behavior.
“But just as she has vigorously confronted that behavior in the Oval Office and the House of Representatives, Joe Biden looks forward to doing the same at the debate stage,” Bates said Thursday in a statement.
This story was updated Thursday with additional developments.
CNN’s Sarah Mucha contributed to this report.
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