How the Harris campaign is taunting Trump over debate

(CNN) — Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced on Truth Social that he has “reached an agreement” to participate in a September 10 debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, noting that “the rules will be the same as the last CNN debate, which seemed to work out well for everyone.”

The rules will largely mirror the terms used by CNN for its June 27 debate, including that microphones will be muted as the other candidate speaks and no studio audience will be present, a person familiar with the matter confirmed to CNN.

Still, the Harris campaign maintains that discussions are ongoing with ABC over whether microphones will remain on during September’s presidential debate, according to a source familiar with the matter.

In a statement, a Harris campaign spokesperson needled Trump, saying: “Both candidates have publicly made clear their willingness to debate with unmuted mics for the duration of the debate to fully allow for substantive exchanges between the candidates - but it appears Donald Trump is letting his handlers overrule him. Sad!”

Trump did not specifically mention the muted microphones in his post, simply saying the rules will be the same as in his first debate of the cycle with President Joe Biden. His announcement follows a period of negotiations between his and Harris’ campaigns, which had reached a stalemate over specific debate protocols, particularly regarding the muting of microphones when candidates are not speaking.

Trump’s team, according to a source familiar with the matter, wanted the microphones to be muted throughout the debate except for the candidate whose turn it is to speak, as was the case in June.

But on Monday, Trump appeared to undercut his campaign, telling reporters he would prefer to have live microphones.

The CNN debate rules also had the absence of a studio audience. Both candidates stood at a uniform podium with the position determined by a coin flip. The 90-minute debate had two commercial breaks and campaign staff was not permitted to interact with the candidates during that time. No props or pre-written notes were allowed on the stage, but candidates were given a pen, a pad of paper and a bottle of water.

It appears, however, that the debate over debates is not entirely over. Trump said Harris has declined a September 4 interview on Fox News, but that he would keep the date open in case she “changes her mind.” Trump also teased a possible third debate with NBC News, which he said the Harris campaign has not accepted.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez contributed to this story.

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