Donald Trump ruled out another presidential debate with Kamala Harris on Thursday, as her campaign announced a massive fundraising push in the hours after the two candidates met on stage.
Trump, the Republican nominee, posted on Truth Social that “THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!” after Tuesday’s debate against Harris and his June debate against President Joe Biden. In declining to debate another, the former president suggested that a “prize fighter” who loses a fight is always the one asking for a rematch.
A day earlier, he had said, “I just don’t know,” when asked whether he would meet Harris for another debate. Some Republicans, including No. 2 GOP Sen. John Thune, have called on Trump to debate Harris again.
While he could still change his mind, his announcement means Tuesday’s meeting will likely be the only time voters see the two debate each other before the November election. More than 67 million people tuned in to watch the Trump-Harris debate.
Harris, the Democratic nominee, said at a rally in North Carolina on Thursday that she believes she and the former president “owe it to the voters” to debate again. Meanwhile, her campaign revealed she raised $47 million from nearly 600,000 donors in the 24 hours following her Tuesday debate against Trump.
“This historic, 24-hour victory reflects a strong and growing coalition of Americans united behind Vice President Harris’ candidacy, who know what’s at stake in November, and who are doing their part to defeat Donald Trump in November,” said Jen O’Malley Dillon, campaign manager.
Tuesday’s debate marked the first time Trump and Harris had met, and the vice president largely controlled the tone, goading Trump into heated responses that included exaggerations and falsehoods. It came two months after Trump’s debate against Biden, whose unsteady performance and meandering answers led him to end his reelection bid and endorse Harris as his replacement on the ticket.
Trump had expressed doubts earlier in the campaign about whether he would debate Harris at all. Ultimately, the two agreed to debate Tuesday on ABC.
Trump called Harris a “no-show” for a debate date proposed earlier this month. Instead of an event with Harris, Trump ended up going to Fox News for a solo townhall with host Sean Hannity.
Fox News has invited both campaigns to a debate in October.
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Associated Press journalist Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report.
