Harris Accepts Debate Rules for Sept. 10 Showdown With Trump, Including Strict Mic Controls

Vice President Kamala Harris has accepted the rules for the Sept. 10 presidential debate against former President Donald Trump, including the provision to mute microphones when it’s not a candidate’s turn to speak.

ABC News announced the debate rules on Sept. 4, finalizing the terms after weeks of negotiations between the two campaigns.

A letter from Harris’s campaign to ABC, obtained by the Associated Press, confirmed acceptance of the rules, marking a conclusion to the negotiations over microphone muting, which had for some time threatened to derail the debate.

Both the Harris and Trump campaigns previously offered dueling statements on the debate and whether microphones should be muted or not. An earlier agreement announced by Trump and President Joe Biden for both the CNN and ABC debates included the muting of microphones, which occurred during the first debate.

Harris campaign adviser Brian Fallon stated on Aug. 26 that both candidates’ microphones should remain live throughout the debate, suggesting that Trump’s team preferred muting because of doubt whether Trump could maintain presidential behavior for the full 90 minutes.

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