Trump announces 3 debate dates at Mar-a-Lago news conference

Former President Donald Trump will host a news conference Thursday
It marks his first public address since Harris announced Walz as running mate
ABC confirmed Trump and Harris will debate on Sept. 10

Updated: Aug 8, 2024 / 06:19 PM EDT

(NewsNation) — Former President Donald Trump says he’s agreed to three September debates across different networks.

The debates will happen Sept. 4, 10 and 25, he said Thursday.

ABC confirmed Thursday that both candidates have agreed to attend the Spet. 10 debate, originally scheduled to be between Trump and President Joe Biden.

Trump’s announcement came during a “general news conference” at his Mar-a-Lago property in Palm Beach, Florida. He continued to criticize Democratic nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris for not hosting any news conferences since entering the race in July.

“She’s not smart enough to do a news conference,” Trump said.

It’s one of several attacks Trump has made against Harris’ intelligence. He’s also repeatedly reminded voters that Harris did not pass the bar exam on her first attempt and on Thursday, said former Trump presidential opponent Hillary Clinton is “superior” to Kamala in intelligence. He went on to repeat claims that the country would be headed for “World War III” if voters elected Harris in November.

Thursday’s news conference marked Trump’s first public address since Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate for the 2024 election. His comments included several tangents about immigration, social security, transgender issues and Elon Musk.

Trump previously said he would not attend the debate planned for Sept. 10, teasing a separate Sept. 4 debate on Fox News. The Harris campaign, in turn, accused Trump of “running scared,” saying “The Vice President will be there one way or the other to take the opportunity to speak to a prime-time national audience.”

Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, recently criticized Harris for not hosting news conferences or taking interviews since President Joe Biden announced he would no longer seek the Democratic nomination.

The November election was poised to be a rematch between Biden and Trump. The former president falsely claimed the 2020 election was “stolen” after Biden’s victory.

NewsNation’s Kevin Bohn contributed to this report.