President Biden and former President Trump have accepted an invitation to a presidential debate June 27 hosted by CNN, setting the stage for the first showdown between the two major party candidates ahead of the 2024 election and each party’s convention.
“I’ve received and accepted an invitation from @CNN for a debate on June 27th. Over to you, Donald. As you said: anywhere, any time, any place,” Biden posted on the social platform X.
Trump told Fox News Digital in a subsequent statement he had also accepted the invitation for the June 27 debate, telling the outlet he is “looking forward to being in beautiful Atlanta.”
The network said shortly after in a statement that it would host the debate without an audience at its Atlanta studios. It will be aired live on CNN, CNN International, CNN en Espanol and CNN.com.
The Biden campaign earlier Wednesday called for the first debate to take place in late June, after the president returns from the Group of Seven summit in Europe and after Trump’s hush money trial in New York will likely have concluded.
The campaign suggested a second debate in September ahead of the start of early voting in many states, as well as a vice presidential debate in late July, after the Republican National Convention.
The Biden campaign said it would work directly with news organizations to set up the debates, spurning the Commission on Presidential Debates, which has facilitated the debates between presidential candidates since 1988.
Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon suggested working with outlets that hosted GOP primary debates in 2016 and Democratic primary debates in 2020 to avoid any perceptions of bias.
Trump has had a fractious history with CNN, blasting the network, its executives and its on-air talent as “fake news” throughout his first term in office.
Trump attended a live town hall hosted by CNN and moderated by Kaitlan Collins, an event that drew backlash after Trump frequently spoke over Collins and repeated false claims about election fraud.
Biden recently granted a rare one-on-one interview with anchor CNN Erin Burnett, during which he said of Trump “I promise you he won’t,” accept the result of the 2024 election if he loses.
Wednesday’s announcement came as CNN’s parent company, WarnerBros. Discovery was presenting to prospective advertisers on Wednesday at the annual UpFront events in New York City.
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