OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former President Donald Trump has issued a new challenge to President Joe Biden after the latter finally agreed to debates last week.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “Crooked Joe Biden just announced that he’s willing to debate! Everyone knows he doesn’t really mean it, but in case he does, I say, ANYWHERE, ANYTIME, ANYPLACE, an old expression used by Fighters.”
Trump added: “In fact, let’s do the Debate at the Courthouse tonight – on National Television, I’ll wait around!”
Earlier this month, Trump said he’s prepared to debate Biden “anytime, anyplace” ahead of the November presidential election, saying it would be “for the good of the country.”
“You can see we have an empty podium right here to my right. You know what that is? That’s for Joe Biden,” Trump said during a campaign rally in Wisconsin, where he had an empty mic stand next to his podium, symbolic of his eagerness to debate Biden.
“I’m trying to get him to debate,” he added. “I’m calling on ‘Crooked Joe’ to debate anytime, anyplace. We’ll do it any way you want, Joe.”
The mic stand was adorned with a black placard that read, “Anytime. Anywhere. Anyplace.”
“Let’s go have a good, solid, friendly debate,” Trump said.
Biden campaign spokesman Michael Tyler called the stunt a “weak merch play from a guy desperate to avoid talking about how he’s got no cash, no campaign infrastructure, and no answer for how his chaotic, divisive, and violent campaign is going to win this November.”
“Trump said last fall only people who are losing want debates,” Tyler added. “At least we agree on something.”
Biden stated last month that he might not participate in a debate with Trump before their expected rematch in the election.
“It depends on his behavior,” Biden said.
Trump echoed a similar tune late last month.
During an interview with Dan Bongino for his radio show, Trump said that he did not think Biden would remain in the race but called on him to debate “immediately.”
“And I don’t think he’s going to run. I don’t know if it’s donors or otherwise. It might be his family. It might be something,” Trump said. “I don’t think he’s gonna run, but I’d like to call for, immediately, debates. I’d like to debate him now because we should debate. We should debate for the good of the country. So I will officially go on your show call.”
A shocking new poll found that Trump has dramatically increased what had been a relatively small lead in national surveys over Biden.
CNN’s survey, conducted by SSRS, found Trump a stunning 6 points ahead of Biden—49-43 percent, well outside the margin of error—with 8 percent undecided. Previously, Trump had led Biden by much smaller margins or was virtually tied with him, according to RealClearPolitics’ average of polling.
But all that changed in April — ironically, the same month that Trump’s first criminal trial began in Manhattan on 34 felony counts related to a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, who admitted in a 2018 statement in a letter made public that she had not had an affair with the future president.
“And in the coming rematch, opinions about the first term of each man vying for a second four years in the White House now appear to work in Trump’s favor, with most Americans saying that, looking back, Trump’s term as president was a success, while a broad majority says Biden’s has so far been a failure,” the polling firm said in an analysis of its survey data.
“Republicans now are more unified around the idea that Trump’s presidency was a success than Democrats are that Biden’s has been one. Overall, 92% of Republicans call Trump’s time in office a success, while just 73% of Democrats say Biden’s has been a success so far. Among independents, 51% say Trump’s presidency was successful, while only 37% see Biden’s as a success,” the analysis continued.
