Republican VP nominee Sen. JD Vance agreed Thursday to square off in two vice presidential debates — only one of which his Democratic challenger, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, has agreed to so far.
One faceoff will come Oct. 1 in a CBS News vice presidential debate, as well as a separate Sept. 18 debate with CNN.
“The American people deserve as many debates as possible, which is why President Trump has challenged Kamala to three of them already. Not only do I accept the CBS debate on October 1st, I accept the CNN debate on September 18th as well. I look forward to seeing you at both!” Vance posted on X.
On Wednesday, CBS pitched four different dates to the two campaigns: Sept. 17, Sept. 24, Oct. 1 and Oct. 8. Later that day, Walz announced that he had selected Oct. 1.
“See you on October 1, JD,” Walz wrote on X.
CBS News had effectively been in limbo for months on the veep debate. Vice President Kamala Harris agreed to the debate back in May to proposed dates for July 23 or Aug. 13, but the Trump campaign declined to formally agree to it.
Among other things, the Trump campaign cited concerns that Harris wouldn’t be the VP contender by the time the CBS debate came up.
Then President Biden dropped out of the race on July 21, elevating Harris to the top of the Democratic ticket. His throwing in the towel came against the backdrop of a dismal debate performance against former President Donald Trump in June that sparked a mutiny among Democrats against him.
It remains unclear whether Walz will accept the Sept. 18 debate as well.
Vance, 40, and Walz, 60, traded barbs on the campaign stump for days leading up to them agreeing upon a date.
“I was told I was going to get to debate Kamala Harris, and now President Trump is going to get to debate her? I’m kind of pissed off about that, if I’m being honest with you,” Vance joked at an Ohio rally last month.
“I got to tell you, I can’t wait to debate the guy … that is if he’s willing to get off the couch and show up,” Walz chided after being announced as Harris’ running mate last week, referencing an internet hoax of Vance mentioning an X-rated anecdote about a couch in his book.
Trump, 78, and Harris, 59, have also agreed to a Sept. 10 debate hosted by ABC News — the same date that had previously been agreed to between Trump and Biden.
The 45th president had further accepted Sept. 4 on Fox News and Sept. 25 on NBC, according to a press conference he held last week.
“I am happy to have that conversation about an additional debate, or after September 10, for sure,” Harris later told reporters, not committing to the other debates Trump mentioned.
Unlike past election cycles, these presidential debates will not be coordinated by the Commission on Presidential Debates, which helped orchestrate them since the late 1980s.
