Former President Trump appears to be leaving the door open for a potential second debate with Vice President Kamala Harris after declaring another one-on-one with his Democratic rival was off the table.
Following Friday’s press conference in California, Fox News’ Aishah Hasnie pressed Trump on what it would take for him to agree to another debate.
“I wouldn’t need anything. I could do it tomorrow,” Trump responded. “I’ve done two debates. Everything was crooked in the second one.”
“I did great in the debates, and I think they’ve answered everything. But maybe if I got in the right mood, I don’t know,” he added before claiming he was “leading in every single” post-debate poll.
FOX NEWS MEDIA PROPOSES SECOND HARRIS-TRUMP DEBATE MODERATED BY MARTHA MACCALLUM, BRET BAIER
Former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris faced off for the first time at the ABC News presidential debate. (Reuters)
Trump’s latest comments strike a different tone from the one he had in his Truth Social post declaring the prospects of a third debate were dead.
“When a prizefighter loses a fight, the first words out of his mouth are, ‘I WANT A REMATCH,’” Trump posted Thursday. “Polls clearly show that I won the Debate against Comrade Kamala Harris, the Democrats’ Radical Left Candidate, on Tuesday night, and she immediately called for a Second Debate.”
He later continued, “She was a no-show at the Fox Debate, and refused to do NBC & CBS. KAMALA SHOULD FOCUS ON WHAT SHE SHOULD HAVE DONE DURING THE LAST ALMOST FOUR YEAR PERIOD. THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!”
VOTERS GIVE HARRIS THE WIN, BUT PRAISE TRUMP ON POLICY: SHE GOT UNDER HIS SKIN
Former President Trump suggested he’d be willing to participate in a second debate if he was in the “right mood.” (Win McNamee)
Trump previously agreed to debates proposed by Fox News and NBC News ahead of the ABC News debate, both of which Harris did not accept.
FOX News Media has since sent a letter to the Trump and Harris campaigns offering to host another debate, with Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum as moderators and proposing three dates in October.
Meanwhile, Trump’s running mate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, is set to face off against his Democratic rival Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for a debate hosted by CBS News on Oct. 1.
ABC DEBATE MODERATORS SPARK FURY FOR AGGRESSIVE FACT-CHECKING OF TRUMP, EASY TREATMENT OF HARRIS
Vice President Kamala Harris has already called on former President Trump to agree to a second debate. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Tuesday marked Trump’s second presidential debate after he faced off against President Biden in a debate in June hosted by CNN. Biden’s disastrous debate performance resulted in his exit from the race and Harris quickly emerged as the Democratic nominee.
Trump went on to participate in this week’s ABC News Presidential Debate he initially agreed to with Biden. Harris attempted to change the rules that were agreed on between the Trump and Biden campaigns by fighting for unmuted mics, which she failed to get.
Since Tuesday’s debate, the former president has repeatedly alluded to ABC’s debate moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis, who have faced intense backlash for their constant fact-checking of Trump while going easy on Harris.
Joseph A. Wulfsohn is a media reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on Twitter: @JosephWulfsohn.
