By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON and SEUNG MIN KIM (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Nikki Haley is challenging Donald Trump to debate. Trump is challenging Joe Biden to debate. And Biden is laughing Trump off, at least publicly.
But there are real questions about whether any of them will confront each other on a stage this year.
Biden’s reelection campaign has repeatedly declined to commit to joining debates with Trump, his likely opponent in the November general election. Trump, meanwhile, has feuded with the Republican National Committee and refused to join its primary debates. In 2020, he objected to the rules of the nonpartisan commission that has hosted general election debates since 1976.
While any disputes could be resolved by the fall, the uncertainty reflects how both Biden and Trump are increasingly choosing to reach voters in environments they control at the expense of nonpartisan interviews or events where they might face unfriendly questions. Both the 81-year-old Biden and 77-year-old Trump have at times confused names and countries and face widespread doubts from voters about their age and readiness.
There’s also lingering animosity over how their debates went four years ago.
Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, a longtime Biden confidant, noted that he was in the room for the chaotic September 2020 debate when Trump repeatedly interrupted Biden and moderator Chris Wallace.
Lowering his voice to a whisper, Coons said: “That was bad.”
He then questioned whether a general election debate this year would be worth it.
“It’s challenging to imagine, given that the RNC and the Trump campaign have said they will have nothing to do with the Commission on Presidential Debates and given his previous conduct, it’s hard to imagine it being productive,” Coons said. “But this is ultimately a judgment call for President Biden.”
Debates are not mandatory, but they are considered a traditional test for candidates where they have no…
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