Trump says he will no longer participate in presidential debates with Harris

Former President Donald Trump said Thursday he will not participate in future debates with Vice President Kamala Harris.

“There will be no debate,” he said in all caps on his Truth Social website, before criticizing the vice president’s debate performance. Asked by NBC News for clarification on Trump’s remarks, Karoline Leavitt said in a statement: “You heard the man.”

His comments came just two days after he and Harris met in Philadelphia for a primetime debate sponsored by ABC News.

The two clashed over inflation, abortion and immigration, and Trump made several false or misleading statements that were fact-checked live by moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis. His use of conspiracy theories and inflammatory remarks has raised concerns among his allies.

Trump alleged that the moderators were unfair and were initially reluctant to engage in another confrontation with Harris.

The two candidates have not formally agreed to further debates, but several networks have said they are in talks to schedule one.

In multiple TruthSocial posts, Trump had said he was considering debate offers from Fox, CBS and NBC. Last month, NBC confirmed it had offered Sept. 25 for a possible debate.

During an interview with “Fox and Friends” on Wednesday, host Steve Doocy said the network on Tuesday night offered the Trump and Harris campaigns three possible October dates for an additional debate. In response, Trump said: “Well, I wouldn’t want Martha (MacCallum) and Bret (Baier). I’d like to have someone other than Martha and Bret.”

Fox News had proposed to both campaigns a debate on September 4, hosted by hosts MacCallum and Baier, but that date passed without the campaigns agreeing to a meeting.

A representative for NBC declined to comment. Representatives for CBS and Fox did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

When asked for comment, Harris’ campaign referred to her remarks in North Carolina on Thursday: “I believe we owe it to the voters to have another debate, because this election and what’s at stake couldn’t be more important.”