PHOENIX (AP) — The nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, which has planned presidential faceoffs in every election since 1988, has an uncertain future after President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump struck an agreement to meet on their own.
The Biden and Trump campaigns announced a deal Wednesday to meet for debates in June on CNN and September on ABC. Just a day earlier, Frank Fahrenkopf, chair of the Commission on Presidential Debates, had sounded optimistic that the candidates would eventually come around to accepting the commission’s debates.
“There’s no way you can force anyone to debate,” Fahrenkopf said in a virtual meeting of supporters of No Labels, which has continued as an advocacy group after it abandoned plans for a third-party presidential ticket. But he noted candidates have repeatedly toyed with skipping debates or finding alternatives before eventually showing up, though one was canceled in 2020 when Trump refused to appear virtually after he contracted COVID-19.
Not so Cool Britannia! Noel Gallagher gives damning verdict on Keir Starmer
the remote Canadian Island known as MARS on earth! It is so otherworldly, NASA uses it for research
Pope trip to Luxembourg, Belgium confirmed for September, 2 weeks after challenging Asia visit
The best views in Britain? Three
Blackpool rocks! Inside the coastal town brimming with old
The best views in Britain? Three
French sports minister calls for sanctions after Monaco player tapes over anti
Shed of the Year 2024: We speak to one entrant who created his dream British boozer 'The Dirty Dog'