Trump Says He Might Bypass Presidential Debate Commission in 2020

President Donald Trump makes the thumbs up sign as he exits a motorcade to board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., en route to Philadelphia to attend the Army-Navy football game, on Dec. 14, 2019. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)

President Donald Trump said that he might go around the Commission on Presidential Debates, claiming the purported nonpartisan group is full of people who hate him.

“I look very much forward to debating whoever the lucky person is who stumbles across the finish line in the little watched Do Nothing Democrat Debates. My record is so good on the Economy and all else, including debating, that perhaps I would consider more than 3 debates,” Trump said in a statement on Monday.

“The problem is that the so-called Commission on Presidential Debates is stacked with Trump Haters & Never Trumpers. 3 years ago they were forced to publicly apologize for modulating my microphone in the first debate against Crooked Hillary. As President, the debates are up to me, and there are many options, including doing them directly & avoiding the nasty politics of this very biased Commission,” he added.

“I will make a decision at an appropriate time but in the meantime, the Commission on Presidential Debates is NOT authorized to speak for me (or R’s)!”

In a statement sent to news outlets, the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) claimed that it is nonpartisan.

“The televised general election debates are an important part of our democratic process. Since 1988, the Commission on Presidential Debates has conducted 30 general election presidential and vice presidential debates. Our record is one of fairness, balance, and nonpartisanship,” it stated.

According to its website, the commission “was established in 1987 and has sponsored and produced all general election presidential and vice presidential debates since then. The CPD receives no funding from the government or any political party or campaign.”

The commission in October said it scheduled four 2020 general election debates, including one vice presidential debate.

The first presidential debate will take place on Sept. 29, 2020, at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

The vice presidential debate will be held on Oct. 7, 2020, at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, followed by two more presidential debates: one at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor on Oct. 15 and one at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee on Oct. 22.

The debates will last 90 minutes and not have commercials. The moderators have not been chosen as of yet.