Harris, Trump argue over muted microphones during upcoming debate

The Vice Presidential Campaigns Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump debate ahead of their key debate on September 10 whether microphones should be muted except for the candidate whose turn it is to speak.

While it’s common for campaigns to bicker about debate mechanics beforehand, both Harris and Trump are under pressure to deliver a strong performance in Philadelphia next month. The first debate of this campaign resulted in President Joe Bidens Depart from the race.

Trump raised the possibility Sunday night that he might not appear on ABC, posting on his Truth Social network that he had watched the network’s Sunday show with a “so-called panel of Trump haters” and asking, “Why would I do the debate against Kamala Harris on that network?” and urging his followers to “stay tuned!!”

The current dispute centers on muting microphones when a candidate is not speaking, a condition that both Biden and Trump accepted before their June debate, hosted by CNN. Both sides accuse the other of gaming the system to protect their candidate.

Biden’s campaign made muting his microphones a condition of his decision to accept debates this year, and some aides are now regretting that decision, saying it shielded voters from Trump’s debate outbursts. The move likely wouldn’t have helped the incumbent Democrat’s disastrous performance.

Harris’ campaign wants the microphones on at all times, according to Harris spokesman Brian Fallon. In a statement, he criticized Trump.

“Trump’s handlers prefer the muted mic because they don’t think their candidate can act presidential for 90 minutes,” Fallon said. Harris “is ready to deal with Trump’s constant lies and interruptions in real time. Trump should stop hiding behind the mute button.”

Trump spokesman Jason Miller responded that the Republican candidate “accepted the ABC debate on exactly the same terms as the CNN debate.” He claimed that Harris’ representatives wanted “a seated debate, with notes and opening statements.”

Miller then slammed Harris for not doing an interview or holding a press conference since Biden ended his reelection and endorsed her. According to Miller, her campaign now wants to give her “a cheat sheet for the debate.”

Harris’ campaign denied Miller’s claim that she wanted to take notes or sit during the debate.

“I’d probably rather have it on,” Trump said Monday during a stop in the Washington area, when asked about muting the microphones. “I didn’t like it last time, but it worked out fine,” he added, referring to the policy during his debate with Biden.

“We agreed to the same rules — the same rules, the same specifications,” Trump noted before his Sept. 10 debate with Harris. “And I think that’s probably what it should be.”

When asked how he prepared for the debate, Trump replied, “I don’t. … I think I’ve spent my whole life preparing for a debate.”

Complicating negotiations this year is that the debates are being orchestrated on an ad hoc basis by the host networks, unlike the bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, where debate rules were negotiated in private.

Microphones have not been muted for either candidate for most of the history of televised presidential debates. The debate commission announced that microphones would be muted for the October 2020 debate if no candidates were identified to speak after the first Biden-Trump contest devolved into a shouting match. The second 2020 debate with microphone muting rules in place was widely praised as more substantive than the previous showdown.

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Associated Press reporters Zeke Miller and Colleen Long in Washington and Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this report.

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Meg Kinnard reported from Chapin, South Carolina, and can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP