Harris wants Trump’s microphone to remain on during the entire upcoming debate

A Trump spokesman did not immediately return a request for comment on whether that was true. But more broadly, the Trump campaign is complaining that the Harris campaign is making new demands about the upcoming debate, which will take place on September 10 in Philadelphia.

“Now that they’ve started their debate preparations with Harris, they want to change the rules,” Trump adviser Jason Miller wrote to X. “What do they see that worries them?”

Miller also told POLITICO that Harris’ campaign “asked for a sit-down debate with notes and opening statements.” Fallon told the media that the campaign did not push for grades or for candidates to be seated.

The debate at the microphones comes after Trump suggested on Truth Social Sunday night that he might skip the debate, claiming ABC wouldn’t be fair to him: “Why would I do the debate against Kamala Harris on that network. ?”

The Harris campaign’s active microphone request is a significant break from the Biden campaign, which demanded before the disastrous June 27 debate that each candidate’s microphone remain muted while the other spoke.

The shift likely reflects a degree of confidence in Harris’ candidacy that didn’t necessarily exist with Biden — that while the 80-year-old president may have balked at Trump’s potential disruptions, the young vice president will be able to make such outbursts work to her advantage.

“She’s more than happy to have exchanges with him if he tries to break it off,” a person familiar with the negotiations told POLITICO, adding that Trump is “very prone to outbursts” and that “the campaign would like viewers to hear. “