US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has agreed to a debate with Democratic U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on September 4, as announced on his Truth Social account late Friday.
"Should Kamala be unavailable or unwilling to participate in the debate on that date, I have arranged with Fox to host a significant Town Hall event on the same evening of September 4," Trump stated in his post.
On July 21, Trump expressed his belief that Vice President Kamala Harris would be a more manageable opponent than Democratic President Joe Biden, who had just withdrawn as his party's candidate. CNN reported that these remarks were made shortly after Biden's announcement. Trump also criticized Biden on social media, asserting that he was unfit to serve as president.
At the country's largest gathering of Black journalists on July 31, Trump inaccurately claimed that his Democratic rival Kamala Harris had understated her Black heritage. "She always identified with her Indian heritage and only promoted that. It wasn't until recently that she claimed to be Black, and now she wants to be recognized as such," Trump said, eliciting a mix of reactions from the audience of approximately 1,000.
"So, is she Indian or Black? I respect both, but she clearly doesn't, as she was Indian through and through, and then suddenly she changed and became Black," Trump continued.
Shortly after Trump's remarks, Harris addressed members of the historically Black sorority Sigma Gamma Rho in Houston, describing his comments as "another reminder" of the previous administration's tenure. Harris, who identifies as both Black and Asian due to her Indian and Jamaican heritage, made history as the first Black and Asian American Vice President.
