President Joe Biden and his Republican rival Donald Trump have agreed to participate in a CNN-hosted debate scheduled for late June, according to reports from the US media outlet. The anticipation of this showdown has sparked a flurry of exchanges between the two contenders on social media.
On Wednesday morning, Biden announced on X that he had accepted CNN’s invitation to debate Trump on June 27. Challenging Trump with the words, “Over to you, Donald. As you said: anywhere, any time, any place,” Biden expressed his readiness for the face-off.
Following Biden’s announcement, a Trump campaign official confirmed that the former president had also agreed to participate in the debate.
This development came shortly after Biden proposed two debates with Trump before the upcoming election in November, bypassing the traditional debate schedule set by a bipartisan commission.
In a video shared online earlier that day, Biden remarked, “Donald Trump lost two debates to me in 2020 and has since avoided debating altogether. Now, he seems eager to engage in a debate once more. Well, bring it on. I’m up for it, even twice.”
Biden had extended an invitation to Trump for two televised presidential debates in June and September, outlining his proposal for direct negotiations between their campaigns regarding the debate rules, network hosts, and moderators.
Responding promptly, Trump took to his Truth Social platform, expressing his willingness to debate Biden on the proposed dates. He suggested having more than two debates and a large venue for added excitement, taunting Biden’s supposed fear of crowds.
“Just name the time and place, and I’ll be there. ‘Let’s get ready to Rumble!!!'” Trump declared.
As anticipation builds for this high-stakes debate, polls indicate a close race between the two candidates.
Link from www.aljazeera.com