Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is engaging in a back-and-forth with former President Donald Trump’s campaign regarding the issue of muted versus unmuted microphones at the upcoming presidential debate hosted by ABC News.
The Harris campaign's deputy campaign manager, Quentin Fulks, expressed amusement at the situation, stating that Trump's handlers are advising him that his microphone must be muted. Fulks highlighted the uncertainty surrounding Trump's stance on the matter, as the former president initially indicated a preference for unmuted microphones before his team reversed course.
This sentiment echoes earlier remarks made by the Harris campaign’s senior adviser, Brian Fallon, who suggested that Trump's team lacks confidence in his ability to engage in live debate with Vice President Harris.
Trump, on the other hand, appeared indifferent to the microphone issue during an event in Virginia, stating that while he would prefer an unmuted microphone, he agreed to abide by the same rules as the previous debate with President Joe Biden.
Subsequently, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to reiterate that the debate rules would mirror those of the previous encounter with Biden, which he deemed successful for all parties involved except for Biden.
The rules outlined by ABC, shared with the campaigns a week prior, closely resemble the format of the June debate between Trump and Biden. In that debate, the candidates' microphones were muted while their opponent was speaking, a stipulation that the Biden campaign had insisted upon and one that the Harris campaign had sought to modify in recent days.
