US Elections campaign hots up as Kamala Harris cocks a snook after Trump hints at cancelling September debate

Kamala Harris's campaign has ramped up its criticism of former President Donald Trump by posting a video that overlays chicken sounds on footage of Trump discussing the upcoming presidential debate. The video, released on social media, includes a clip from a Fox News interview where Trump is asked by Maria Bartiromo why he hasn’t committed to the debate.

In the video, Trump responds, "Why should I do a debate? I'm leading in the polls. Everyone knows her, everyone knows me." The Harris campaign added repeated chicken noises throughout the video, implying that Trump is reluctant to face Harris.

The video also highlights a segment from Trump’s campaign stop in Virginia, where he suggested moving the debate to another network, accusing ABC of unfair treatment towards Republican Senator Tom Cotton during a recent appearance. Trump stated, "When I looked at the hostility of that, I said, ‘Why am I doing it? Let’s do it with another network.’ I want to do it."



The debate, scheduled for September 10, has also become contentious over the issue of hot mics. The Harris campaign is pushing for microphones to remain on throughout the debate, a shift from previous debates' formats. Trump’s team claims that this change is an attempt by Harris to alter the debate rules in hopes of forcing Trump to back out.

Trump has been hinting at the possibility of skipping his first presidential debate against Kamala Harris. Late Sunday night, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to question the need for his participation, citing issues with the debate's hosting network, ABC. "Why would I do the Debate against Kamala Harris on that network?... They've got a lot of questions to answer!!! Why did Harris turn down Fox, NBC, CBS, and even CNN? Stay tuned!!!" Trump wrote.

This isn't the first time Trump has expressed doubt about participating. During a visit to Arlington National Cemetery the previous day, he criticized ABC, calling it "the single worst network for unfairness," according to Poynter. Trump also suggested that ABC "really should be shut out" from hosting the debate.

Trump had previously agreed to an ABC-hosted debate during his campaign against President Joe Biden, who has since exited the race. The exchange highlights the growing tension between the two candidates as the debate approaches.

Polls indicate that Harris currently holds a slight lead over Trump. A recent average of national polls shows Harris ahead by 3.5 points. Additionally, a new poll from Fairleigh Dickinson University indicates that Harris's lead over Trump increases to seven points when race and gender are factored in by voters.