The main objective is to get Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in the same space at least once. They are, after all, vying for the most important job in the nation, if not the world. Showing fitness for the office is imperative.
Will they or won’t they?
By the time this editorial is in print, the Sept. 10 debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump could be, once again, a no-go, considering the back-and-forth about muted mics and other issues in recent days.
But as we write this, both presidential candidates were committed to squaring off in Philadelphia.
“I have reached an agreement with the Radical Left Democrats for a Debate with Comrade Kamala Harris,” the Republican nominee wrote in his typical brusque manner on his Truth Social platform last Tuesday. “It will be Broadcast Live on ABC FAKE NEWS, by far the nastiest and most unfair newscaster in the business.”
Trump’s views on journalism and hard facts don’t matter. It’s also immaterial whether or not the mics are muted when it’s not a candidate’s turn to speak (the mics will be muted, according to the latest reports, while the Harris campaign reportedly preferred hot mics). The main objective is to get the two in the same space at least once, so Americans can learn more about how they would tackle the substantive issues facing the country.
Polls have consistently shown that Americans’ top concerns this election season are the economy and immigration. Other issues on voters’ radar include reproductive rights, health care, climate change and the environment, tax cuts, and the U.S.’s roles in overseas conflicts such as the Israel-Hamas war and the war in Ukraine.
