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WASHINGTON, Oct 8 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump added further turmoil to the U.S. presidential race on Thursday by refusing to participate in an Oct. 15 debate with Democratic rival Joe Biden after he switched to a virtual event. to prevent the spread of COVID-19, prompting both campaigns to propose to postpone it for a week.
By Steve Holland
Trump, who was hospitalized for three days after revealing last Friday that he had tested positive for the coronavirus, criticized the format change announced by the nonpartisan commission in charge of the debates and expressed concern that his microphone could be cut off. Trump, who is still receiving treatment for COVID-19, also said he wanted to resume campaign rallies.
“I am not going to waste time in a virtual debate. That’s not what the debate is about, ”Trump said in a nearly hour-long telephone interview with Fox Business. “You sit behind a computer and have a debate; it’s ridiculous, and then they cut you when they want to.”
Following the Republican president’s comments, the Biden and Trump campaigns proposed delaying the debate, which had been planned as the second of three, until September 22, the date of what was scheduled as their final meeting before the elections on September 3. of November. The Trump campaign also proposed holding another debate on October 29, which the Biden campaign rejected.
“Trump’s erratic behavior does not allow him to rewrite the calendar and pick new dates of his choice,” said Kate Bedingfield, Biden’s deputy campaign manager.
Even before his illness was announced, Trump’s performance in the chaotic first debate with Biden last week prompted calls for a format change. Trump constantly interrupted and spoke about both Biden and the moderator.
With Election Day fast approaching, early voting has broken records. More than 6 million votes have already been cast as Americans change their behavior to avoid a possible infection at polling places amid a pandemic that has already killed more than 210,000 Americans. Opinion polls show Biden leading Trump nationally, although the race seems closer in the battlefield states that could decide the outcome.
The two running mates, Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, participated in a debate Wednesday night that was much more orderly than the first Trump-Biden meeting.
The Presidential Debate Commission announced Thursday morning that it planned to host the Oct. 15 debate, planned as a town hall-style conversation, virtually rather than in person in Miami, a move both campaigns said were not consulted .
Some had proposed giving the moderator in future debates the power to interrupt any candidate who interrupted the process. The debating committee said nothing about silencing participants in its announcement, describing the new format as necessary “to protect the health and safety of all involved.”
Some Trump advisers questioned his decision not to participate in the new format, arguing that he would miss the opportunity to make his case to millions of tuned-in voters, said a source familiar with the situation.
After Trump said he would not participate, the Biden campaign issued a statement saying the commission should move the debate from the town hall format to October 22 to give voters a chance to question candidates. Then the Trump campaign issued a statement agreeing to postpone the meeting until October 22, but proposed holding what would be a third debate a week later.
A Biden aide said the Oct. 22 debate should be final and the committee decides on the timing of the debate.
‘I WOULD LOVE TO DO A RALLY’
Trump said he was feeling “really good” and said he was ready to resume campaign rallies. Such demonstrations, particularly indoors, have raised concerns among public health efforts about the spread of the virus. Trump said he is still taking steroids to treat the respiratory illness.
Trump said he did not believe it was still contagious, although that claim was not yet supported by strong evidence from his doctors.
“I would love to have a rally tonight. I wanted to do one last night, “Trump said, adding that” if I’m at a rally, I’m alone, far away from everyone. “
Guidelines from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that people who are seriously ill with COVID-19 may need to stay home for up to 20 days after the first symptoms appear. The White House has not provided detailed information on the severity of Trump’s illness and has declined to say when he last tested negative for the virus.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, challenged Trump to reveal when he last tested negative, asking at a news conference, “Why isn’t the White House telling the country that important fact? “
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt, Steve Holland and Michael Martina, additional reporting by Joseph Ax; written by John Whitesides and Simon Lewis; edited by Scott Malone, Will Dunham and Alistair Bell)
