Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump proposed holding a debate with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris on Fox News on Sept. 4, and Ms. Harris's campaign responded that Mr. Trump is trying to avoid a debate that was scheduled to be held on ABC.
Former President Trump said in a post on Truth Social late Friday that the rules would be similar to those for the previously scheduled debate with President Joe Biden, before he withdrew from the race for the November election.
But the debate he proposed would have an audience in the hall and would be held in Pennsylvania, one of the states expected to be decisive in the outcome of the election.
Former President Trump and President Biden had agreed to a second debate on September 10 on ABC News.
Vice President Harris, who on Friday secured the necessary votes of her party's delegates to secure the nomination, said on Saturday that she plans to attend the previously scheduled debate.
“I will be there on September 10, as (former President Trump) has agreed. I hope to see him there,” she said in a post on the X platform.
A spokesman for Ms. Harris, Michael Tyler, said that Mr. Trump is making the proposal because “he is scared” and that her campaign team is open to discussing further debate after the Sept. 10 one, for which “both campaigns have already agreed”.
Former President Trump said on social media that the debate on ABC television is no longer valid “due to the fact that (President) Biden is no longer participating.”
Mr. Trump's campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment about comments from Ms. Harris' team.
The latest polls show a close race between Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump, who had gained a larger lead over Mr. Biden after the first debate.
Mr Trump's proposal for the Fox News debate came shortly after the Democratic National Committee released a campaign ad on Friday suggesting the former president is “afraid to debate” and that his stance on abortion may be the reason.
David Plouffe, an adviser to former President Barack Obama who recently joined Ms. Harris's campaign team, told X that “right now, he seems to be comfortable just in a friendly environment, trying to his favorite Fox to hold a rally of his own and call it a debate. Maybe he can only handle an argument with someone his own age.”
Mr. Trump is 78 years old, while Mrs. Harris is 59 years old.
