President Trump’s reelection campaign is challenging a decision by Thursday’s presidential debate organizers to focus the discussion on a wider array of topics than initially agreed, charging the decision is “solely to insulate Biden from his own history.”
In a tweet Monday, Trump 2020 campaign manager Bill Stepien published a letter addressed to the Commission on Presidential Debates calling for Thursday’s event to focus on foreign policy in line with “long-standing custom, and as had been promised” by the commission.
The debate “was always billed as the ‘Foreign Policy Debate’ in the series of events agreed to by both the Trump campaign and Biden campaign many months ago,” Stepien’s letter reads. “We urge you to recalibrate the topics and return to subjects which had already been confirmed.”
Our letter to the BDC (Biden Debate Commission) pic.twitter.com/ZsY5JfMbT7
— BillStepien (@BillStepien) October 19, 2020
Third presidential debates have focused on foreign policy historically.
Announced Friday, the topics include, “Fighting COVID-19,” “American Families,” “Race in America,” “Climate Change,” National Security,” and “Leadership.”
Speaking to Fox News on Sunday, Jason Miller, a Trump campaign senior adviser, called the debate’s focus on foreign policy “perfect,” pointing to what he said was Biden’s support for “endless wars.”
Miller tweeted on Monday: “Good morning to everyone except Presidential Debate Commission members who changed focus of final debate away from foreign policy so Joe Biden wouldn’t have to answer to being compromised by the Chinese Communist Party, supporting endless wars and sending pallets of cash to Iran.”
