Looking ahead to a potential rematch between former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden this year, a Democrat senator is raising red flags about the idea of debates.
Debate Doubts
“I would think twice about it,” Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the second-highest ranking Democratic senator, said to The Hill. “I’ve been physically present at one of [Trump’s] debates with Hillary Clinton, and I watched him do outrageous things and say outrageous things. It’s just an opportunity for him to display his extremism.”
Is Trump Debate-Worthy?
Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, a Democrat, and a notable Biden supporter, expressed that Trump’s behavior in the 2020 debates and his reluctance to debate Republican primary opponents like Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida or former Ambassador Nikki Haley “would make a pretty strong case for not dignifying him as a candidate by sharing a debate stage.”
10 Debates with Biden
On the flip side, Trump has displayed a keenness to confront Biden in debates, a sentiment he hasn’t shown towards his GOP adversaries like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis or former Ambassador Nikki Haley.
“Oh, I’m really looking forward to that,” Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, even proposing, “How about 10 debates?”
Trump Seems Ready
Despite the Republican National Committee’s move in 2022 to step away from the Commission on Presidential Debates—a nonpartisan body criticized by conservatives for alleged bias—Trump has made no secret of his eagerness to debate Biden.
20 Rounds?
Presidential and vice-presidential debates are usually exclusively organized by the Commission on Presidential Debates, a role Trump criticized in a conversation with Hugh Hewitt, calling the commission “totally corrupt” and “terrible.”
Still, Trump asserted, “I would do 20 debates even if it was organized by them.”
Is Debate a Must?
Speaking to The Hill, Democratic strategist James Carville advised that President Biden should engage in debates with Trump, noting that debates are a standard expectation of voters for a presidential candidate.
“It’s kind of expected of a presidential candidate,” Carville mentioned. “Not debating would certainly accentuate the age problem.”
Biden Campaign’s Priorities
As for Biden’s campaign, they have yet to make any definitive commitments to general election debates. Quentin Fulks, a senior official in Biden’s campaign, told the press last month that while they will consider the debate schedule, their immediate priority is “making sure we continue to build out a campaign and infrastructure that’s going to be able to be competitive in 2024.”
Trump’s “Fascist” Rhetoric
Former President Donald Trump recently sparked controversy, even among Republicans on Capitol Hill, with his remark that immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country.”
In response, Durbin characterized Trump’s comment as a “fascist blather that the United States should reject from either political party.”
What about Elaine Chao?
Reacting to Trump’s statement about immigrants, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, drew attention to his wife, Elaine Chao, who immigrated from Taiwan as a child.
“It strikes me that it didn’t bother him when he appointed Elaine Chao secretary of transportation,” he expressed.
Senate Endorsements
Confronted with the criticism from fellow Republicans, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung highlighted Trump’s support within the Senate.
He pointed out that Trump “has by far the most Senate endorsements in this race, people who are fighters and want to Make America Great Again.”
Post-Speech Remarks
Trump initially made his comments about immigrants during a New Hampshire speech on Saturday, and he has since reinforced these statements in a post on Truth Social.
“They let — I think the real number is 15, 16 million people into our country. When they do that, we got a lot of work to do. They’re poisoning the blood of our country,” he stated.
Immigration and Global Reach
The former president added, “That’s what they’ve done. They poison mental institutions and prisons all over the world, not just in South America, not just to three or four countries that we think about, but all over the world. They’re coming into our country from Africa, from Asia, all over the world.”
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