Donald Trump’s Comment About Potentially Skipping Debate Mocked: ‘Scared’

A number of Democratic figures have accused Donald Trump of being “scared” to take part in the upcoming debate with Kamala Harris as the pair clash over the event’s format.
The former president and the vice president are scheduled to participate in the ABC-moderated presidential election debate on September 10.
The high-stakes debate could prove vital in the 2024 election, with Harris hoping to continue the rising enthusiasm and support for her White House bid with a strong performance. The previous CNN-hosted debate between Trump and his then 2024 challenger Joe Biden in June ultimately resulted in the president ending his reelection campaign and endorsing Harris in the race.
There have been indications the former president may pull out of the September 10 debate after accusing ABC News of being “ridiculous and biased” and full of “Trump Haters.”
“And I ask, why would I do the Debate against Kamala Harris on that network?” Trump posted on Truth Social on Sunday. “Why did Harris turn down Fox, NBC, CBS, and even CNN? Stay tuned!!!”
Trump’s office has been contacted for comment via email.
Trump has accused Harris’s team of wanting to “change the Rules of the Debate on ABC Fake News” in a reference to the campaigns’ disagreement over having muted microphones during the September 10 event.
In June, ahead of the CNN presidential debate, both Trump and Biden’s teams agreed that each candidate’s microphones should be muted unless they were asked to respond. The move was aimed at preventing interruptions and candidates shouting over the top of each other.
Harris’s team has requested that the microphones not be muted during the ABC debate in an apparent bid not to prevent Trump’s outbursts.
“The Vice President is ready to deal with Trump’s constant lies and interruptions in real-time. Trump should stop hiding behind the mute button,” Harris’s spokesperson Brian Fallon said in a statement.
Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller said both sides had already agreed to the same terms as CNN’s June debate, including having muted microphones, adding: “We said no changes to the agreed-upon rules.”
The quarrel over the debate rules has led to speculation that Trump may use this as an excuse to pull out of the September 10 event, resulting in mockery and criticism against the former president.
In a video posted to X, formerly Twitter, Harris’s campaign team shared a montage of Trump discussing whether he would debate with the Democratic 2024 nominee, which was edited to have the sound of a chicken clucking over the top of it.
“You scared Donald Trump?” the Harris HQ account posted, adding a chicken emoji.
Speaking on MSNBC, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren suggested that Trump is “scared” to debate with Harris.
“Trump is really afraid of Kamala Harris, or as I like to think of it, the felon is really afraid of the prosecutor,” Warren said.
“And for damn good reason. She’s smart, she’s disciplined, and she’s not afraid of a bully. Donald Trump is scared, and I got to say, I think his whole team is scared.
“And that’s why they’re trying to find ways to muzzle him to make this debate not happen if possible because Kamala Harris is going to wipe the floor with Donald Trump,” Warren added.
Democratic political strategist Lindy Li wrote on X: “Trump is TOO scared to debate Harris on ABC. TOO scared to serve our country so he dodged the draft 5 times. TOO scared to face peaceful protestors so he hid in the White House bunker. TOO scared to testify under oath.
“Trump is just a sniveling COWARD masquerading as a strongman.”
When asked by reporters on Monday if he wants microphones muted on the September 10 debate, Trump said it “doesn’t matter” to him but that he would “rather” have them on.
“We agreed to the same rules, same rules and same specifications and I think that’s probably what it should be. But they’re trying to change it,” Trump said.
Florida congressman and Trump supporter Byron Donalds suggested that Harris does not want microphones muted during the debate so she can turn the event into a “spectacle” against Trump.
“She wants to create some sort of moments, and sort of YouTube spectacle, that can be replayed so she can hide behind the debate, as opposed to talking about the policies that impact the American people,” Donalds told Fox News.
“She wants to be able to create this moment where she owns Donald Trump for 10 seconds. That’s just ridiculous. It’s not what matters in our country.”