The upcoming U.S. presidential debate has become a battleground, with Donald Trump and Kamala Harris's teams at odds over the use of open microphones. Trump has threatened to withdraw from the event, accusing the ABC network of bias, according to a Reuters report.
What Happened: Trump, in his third presidential run, hinted at his non-participation in the ABC network-hosted debate via a social media post on Sunday. He questioned the network's impartiality, writing, "Why would I do the Debate against Kamala Harris on that network?"
On Monday, Harris' spokesperson, Brian Fallon, expressed the vice president's campaign's desire for the candidates' microphones to remain on throughout the event. This contrasts with the previous presidential debate where mics were muted when the other candidate was speaking. Fallon urged Trump to "stop hiding behind the mute button."
In response, Trump's campaign senior adviser, Jason Miller, stated that they had agreed to the same terms as CNN's June debate, which included muted microphones. He rejected any changes to the agreed-upon rules. However, Trump later expressed his preference for his microphone to be kept on, showing his distaste for the mute option used in the last debate.
"I'm not spending a lot of time on it. I think my whole life I've been preparing for a debate," Trump said, according to the report.
"You can't cram knowledge into your head, for you know, 30 years of knowledge in one week. So, you know, there's a little debate prep, but I've always done it more or less the same way."
The ABC network has not yet commented on these developments. The debate, agreed upon by Biden and Trump, is scheduled for September 10.
Why It Matters: The September 10 debate between Vice President Harris and Republican candidate Trump is seen as a critical event. However, Trump's recent social media post has cast doubt on his participation, citing perceived bias from the ABC network, owned by Walt Disney Company.
A recent Rasmussen poll, which may be an outlier, showed Trump leading Harris by 3 points, though Harris has led in most polls. The poll was conducted before significant political events, including the Democratic National Convention and Robert Kennedy Jr.'s campaign suspension.
Meanwhile, Harris held a slight edge in betting odds, but the race remained close, with Trump slightly ahead in some prediction markets. Harris had also shown leads in key swing state polls.
即將到來的美國總統辯論已成爲戰場,唐納德·特朗普和卡馬拉·賀錦麗的團隊在使用開放式麥克風問題上存在分歧。據路透社報道,特朗普威脅要退出該活動,指責美國廣播公司網絡存在偏見。
發生了什麼:特朗普在第三次競選總統時通過週日的社交媒體帖子暗示他不參加美國廣播公司網絡主辦的辯論。他質疑該網絡的公正性,寫道:「我爲什麼要在那個網絡上進行鍼對卡馬拉·賀錦麗的辯論?」
週一,賀錦麗的發言人布萊恩·法倫表示,副總統的競選希望候選人的麥克風在整個活動期間保持開啓狀態。這與之前的總統辯論形成鮮明對比,當時另一位候選人發言時麥克風靜音。法倫敦促特朗普 「停止躲在靜音按鈕後面」。
作爲回應,特朗普的競選高級顧問傑森·米勒表示,他們同意的條款與美國有線電視新聞網6月的辯論相同,其中包括麥克風靜音。他拒絕對商定規則進行任何修改。但是,特朗普後來表示傾向於保持麥克風開啓狀態,這表明他對上次辯論中使用的靜音選項感到厭惡。
「我不會花很多時間在這上面。我認爲我一生都在爲辯論做準備。」 報告稱,特朗普說。
「你無法將知識塞進腦海,因爲你知道,在一週內積累30年的知識。所以,你知道,還有一些辯論準備工作,但我一直以相同的方式做辯論。」
美國廣播公司網絡尚未對這些事態發展發表評論。這場辯論由拜登和特朗普商定,定於9月10日舉行。
爲何重要:9月10日賀錦麗副總統與共和黨候選人特朗普之間的辯論被視爲關鍵事件。但是,特朗普最近在社交媒體上發佈的帖子使人們對他的參與產生了懷疑,理由是沃爾特·迪斯尼公司旗下的ABC網絡存在偏見。
拉斯穆森最近的一項民意調查可能是一個異常值,顯示特朗普領先賀錦麗3個百分點,儘管賀錦麗在大多數民意調查中都處於領先地位。該民意調查是在包括民主黨全國代表大會和小羅伯特·肯尼迪在內的重大政治事件之前進行的競選活動暫停。
同時,賀錦麗在投注賠率方面略有優勢,但競爭仍然接近尾聲,特朗普在一些預測市場上略有領先。賀錦麗在關鍵的搖擺州民意調查中也表現出領先地位。