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. |
Nelson Cruz hired by MLB as special adviser for baseball operationsLakota student's feather plume cut off cap during high school commencementBuffalo Bills promote Matt Bazirgan to director of college scouting in series of scouting movesJuventus fires coach Massimiliano Allegri for his outburst toward the refs in the Italian Cup finalChina, Azerbaijan vow to lift bilateral relations to new heightsNFL schedule makers didn't seek out a Chiefs game close to a Taylor Swift concertBillie Eilish fans brand new song Lunch as a 'lesbian anthem' thanks to steamy lyricsPeng Liyuan visits HungarianJudge says South Carolina can enforce 6Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner misses 4th straight game with left hamstring issue