(RightWing.org) – Donald Trump and Joe Biden accepted an invitation to attend a presidential debate hosted by CNN shortly before 11:00 a.m. on May 15. Joe Biden set several conditions on his attendance at the June 27 event, including the exclusion of any third-party candidates. Trump initially appeared to agree with him. Nevertheless, independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) insists he will qualify to appear alongside his Republican and Democrat rivals.
A few minutes later, RFK Jr. posted a statement on his X/Twitter account accusing Trump and Biden of “colluding to lock American into a head-to-head match-up” that 70% of Americans don’t want. He said the presumptive nominees want to exclude him from the debate because they fear he “would win” in November.
Kennedy also said Trump and Biden wanted to avoid discussing their “eight years of failure” as president. He listed shortcomings such as inflation, rising chronic disease, deficits, and wars.
Later that evening, RFK Jr. posted a notice announcing that he would meet CNN’s criteria to participate in the debate by the network’s June 20 deadline. He also wrote that he looked forward to holding his rivals “accountable for their records and would give American voters “the debate they deserve.”
Meanwhile, CNN published the qualification criteria for participation in the debate. Each candidate must gain access to “a sufficient number of state ballots” to receive the required 270 Electoral College votes to secure a November victory by June 20. Additionally, they must reach at least 15% support from likely or registered voters in four separate national polls that meet the network’s “standards for reporting.”
On May 19, RFK Jr. discussed the effort to exclude him from the CNN debate with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo. He confirmed that his campaign is discussing his participation with CNN officials.
Kennedy conceded that he wasn’t currently on the ballot in enough states to meet CNN’s requirement to qualify for the debate but said he would be by the deadline. He also noted that neither Trump nor Biden could technically meet that requirement because they can’t be officially placed on ballots until they receive their respective party’s nomination.
Republicans don’t hold their national conventions until the middle of July, and the Democrats don’t have theirs until August.
Copyright 2024, RightWing.org
