Washington: Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris' campaign has accepted the rules of next week's debate against her Republican rival Donald Trump, including microphones being muted when it is not a candidate's turn to speak, said a source familiar with the matter on Wednesday. This comes ahead of the first face-to-face interaction between Trump and Harris, who took over as the Democratic candidate after President Joe Biden exited the presidential race on July 21.
The source, who declined to be identified, said the Harris campaign was still hoping for moments where ABC News, which will host the September 10 debate, is forced to unmute the mics and let the candidates respond. The issue of microphone muting had threatened to derail the presidential debate between Trump and Harris for some time.
Harris' campaign had advocated for live microphones for the whole debate, saying previously that the practice would “fully allow for substantive exchanges between the candidates.” Interestingly, the condition of muted microphones was sought by Biden himself during his disastrous debate performance against Trump on June 27, a decision his aides said they now regret.
Why did Harris change stance on live mics?
Last week, Harris called on Trump to debate her with their microphones switched on throughout the event. "Donald Trump is surrendering to his advisors who won't allow him to debate with a live microphone. If his own team doesn't have confidence in him, the American people definitely can’t," Harris said in a post on X.
These so-called "hot mics" can help or hurt political candidates, catching off-hand comments that sometimes were not meant for the public. Muted microphones also prevent the debaters from interrupting their opponents. Trump also preferred to have his microphone kept on and did not like it muted in his debate against Biden.
However, Harris' advisers wrote in a letter that she would be "fundamentally disadvantaged by this format, which will serve to shield Donald Trump from direct exchanges with the Vice President. We suspect this is the primary reason for his campaign's insistence on muted microphones."
Harris' campaign further wrote, “We understand that Donald Trump is a risk to skip the debate altogether, as he has threatened to do previously, if we do not accede to his preferred format.” So as not to “jeopardise the debate,” the campaign said, “We accepted the full set of rules proposed by ABC, including muted microphones."
Where do Trump and Harris stand?
The Harris campaign official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss planning around the debate, said a candidate who repeatedly interrupts will receive a warning from a moderator, and both candidates' microphones may be unmuted if there is significant crosstalk so the audience can understand what's happening.
Polls showed that Trump had built a lead over Biden, including in battleground states, but Harris has since edged ahead of the Republican presidential candidate in some national opinion polls. Harris has been conducting mock debates for the prime-time face-off with Philippe Reines, a longtime adviser to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
In the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll, Harris was leading Trump 45 per cent to 41 per cent, indicating a new enthusiasm among voters and shaking up the race ahead of the November 5 election. Some 73 per cent of Democratic registered voters in the Reuters/Ipsos poll said they were more excited about voting in November after Harris entered the race.
(with inputs from agencies)
ALSO READ | In first major interview, Kamala Harris says 'time to turn the page' on Trump, defends Biden | WATCH
ALSO READ | Trump claims Harris agreed to debate on Sept 10, Democrats campaign team rejects claim
