Plexiglass barriers will separate Vice President Mike Pence, Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris, and the moderator of their one and only debate amid a White House coronavirus outbreak.
The Commission on Presidential Debates approved the use of barriers, a measure debuted during South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham’s debate against Democrat Jaime Harrison last weekend when the challenger brought his own plexiglass to their meeting.
President Trump’s campaign was against the barriers for Wednesday’s debate between Pence and the California senator at Salt Lake City’s University of Utah, Politico reported Wednesday.
“If Sen. Harris wants to use a fortress around herself, have at it,” Pence spokeswoman Katie Miller told the outlet.
Pence and Harris being sat further apart, from 7 feet to 13 feet, is among the other changes made to the debate since Trump, first lady Melania Trump, and more than a dozen high-profile Republicans tested positive for COVID-19.
All attendees will also be required to take a test and wear a face covering for the entire 90-minute program, two rules that were not enforced during last week’s first presidential debate. The White House, for instance, has declined to confirm whether Trump returned a negative test before he walked into the Cleveland Clinic last Tuesday, potentially exposing Joe Biden to the virus. Members of the first family similarly refused to don masks during the event.
The next presidential debate on Oct. 15 in Miami will be different as well, but the commission’s promise to introduce “additional structure” was promoted by the unruly opener.
