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| - FACT CHECK: Viral Threads Post Falsely Claims Trump Announced He Wouldn’t Debate Harris
A viral post shared on Threads claims 2024 Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump announced he won’t debate 2024 Democratic candidate and current Vice President Kamala Harris.
Post by @leaningleftyoutubeView on Threads
Verdict: False
The claim is false. On July 23, Politico reported Trump said he would debate Harris while on a conference call with reporters.
Fact Check:
Trump said Harris is “unfit to lead” during a July 24 campaign rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, according to ABC News. Trump also said he wasn’t going to “be nice” during the same rally, the outlet reported.
The Threads post, which has garnered over 1,000 likes as of writing, claims Trump announced he won’t debate Harris. “Trump has announced he won’t debate Kamala Harris. Is he afraid of her?” the post, which includes side-by-side images of the two political candidates, reads. The post does not provide a source to support its claim.
The claim is false. On July 23, Politico reported Trump said he would debate Harris while on a conference call with reporters. According to the outlet, “Trump said he would debate Harris, regardless of whether it was on ABC, and said he ‘would be willing to do more than one debate actually.'” Trump also said that “debating is important for a presidential race,” the outlet reported.
“I think if you’re the Democrat nominee or the Republican nominee, you really have an obligation to debate,” he added, according to Politico.
Trump’s comments to Politico were referenced in a July 24 article published by TIME following President Joe Biden’s recent announcement that he would be suspending his 2024 reelection campaign. The article highlighted comments made by Trump in a July 21 TRUTH Social post, where he criticized ABC News, which was set to host the second debate between Trump and Biden prior to Biden’s departure.
“My debate with Crooked Joe Biden, the Worst President in the history of the United States, was slated to be broadcast on Fake News ABC, the home of George Slopadopolus, sometime in September. Now that Joe has, not surprisingly, has quit the race, I think the Debate, with whomever the Radical Left Democrats choose, should be held on FoxNews, rather than very biased ABC. Thank you! DJT,” Trump wrote.
Trump has not made statements contradicting his previous willingness to debate Harris via his TRUTH Social account or his official website. Likewise, Check Your Fact found no credible news reports to support the claim. In fact, the opposite is true. On July 24, PolitiFact reported the claim was false.
Furthermore, Fox News has invited Trump and Harris to debate on September 17, according to CNN. (RELATED: Did A Fox News Chyron Say’ Kamala Could Be The Oldest Elected Female President?)
Trump has since announced that he will not plan any debates until a Democratic nominee is officially announced, CNN reported. Harris ridiculed the decision on social media, but Trump affirmed that he only formally agreed to debate President Joe Biden, according to the outlet.
Check Your Fact has contacted a Trump spokesperson for comment and will update this piece accordingly if one is received.
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