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. |
Xi Focus: Xi Stresses Youth, Solidarity, Inclusiveness in Vision for Shared FutureZhangjiakou is ready for the 2022 Winter OlympicsHighlights of preliminary round match between Germany and China in women's VNLXi Calls for Breaking New Ground in China's HighMembers of Chinese Olympic delegation arrive in TokyoFootball dream passes from father to sonXinjiang's ski resorts draw growing crowdsHighlights of Australian Open women's singles first roundBook on Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law PublishedBeijing warming up for Winter Games