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. |
Can't sleep? Ditch the duvet and just snuggle under a heavy blanketMarchand breaks team playoff goals mark, Bruins beat Maple Leafs 3Fierceness is 5Liverpool's title hopes hit by 2Shocking moment proOur council is charging us £40 to have our BIN collected... there is no way we're paying upWuhan notches season's first home win in Chinese Super LeagueHow Rageh Omaar refused ITV chiefs' request to hand his bulletin over to a standNHS set to ban trans women from femaleBlues and Reds play out a Super Rugby thriller as similarities stand out