Vice President Kamala Harris refused to give a straight answer on Friday when asked whether President Joe Biden would debate former President Donald Trump before the 2024 election.
Trump, the 2024 GOP frontrunner and presumptive nominee, posted his offer to debate Biden on Wednesday afternoon — just hours after his final GOP challenger Nikki Haley suspended her campaign.
"It is important, for the Good of our Country, that Joe Biden and I Debate Issues that are so vital to America, and the American People," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "Therefore, I am calling for Debates, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYPLACE! The Debates can be run by the Corrupt DNC, or their Subsidiary, the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD)."
Referencing Trump's challenge, ABC News correspondent Mary Bruce asked Harris whether Biden would commit to debating his likely rival.
BIDEN TARGETS TRUMP AND CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS IN STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS
Harris instead pivoted to a discussion of Thursday night's State of the Union address and claimed Biden successfully portrayed himself as "passionate" and "principled."
After touting some of Biden's accomplishments and promises, Harris said Biden offered Americans a "split-screen" between him and Trump, characterizing the former as someone who "actually believes in democracy" and the latter as a man who will conduct himself like a dictator. Biden repeatedly referred to "my predecessor" in scathing terms during the State of the Union address, never mentioning Trump by name.
"But given what you argue is at stake here, will you take the chance to show voters more of what they saw last night to take on Trump directly in debates?" Bruce pressed.
"We'll get to that at some point and we'll deal with that," Harris replied. "But the point is, right now, on this day after the State of the Union, I think the president laid down the facts for the American people in terms of what's at stake. And I thought he did an extraordinary job."
FOX EXCLUSIVE: TRUMP REACTS TO BIDEN STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS
Shortly after Trump's invitation, Biden campaign communications director Michael Tyler fired back.
"I know Donald Trump's thirsty for attention and struggling to expand his appeal beyond the MAGA base — and that's a conversation we'll have at the appropriate time in this cycle," Tyler told Fox News Digital. "But if he's so desperate to see President Biden in prime time, he doesn't have to wait!"
"He can join the tens of millions of Americans who will tune in to watch the State of the Union tomorrow night," Tyler continued. "He might even learn a thing or two about bringing people together and actually delivering for the American people."
The Republican National Committee (RNC) in 2022 unanimously voted to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD).
The RNC clarified that it is not moving away from the presidential debate format, but is rather objecting to the CPD's control over the process. The CPD has organized presidential and vice presidential debates for more than 30 years.
Fox News' Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
