Trump: If I Debate, We're Doing It Differently

Last week, the New York Times reported that President Trump might skip the 2020 presidential debates. On Monday, Trump himself clarified his position: He says he wants to debate, but not through the non-profit organization that has traditionally organized the forums, reports the Hill. In a series of tweets, Trump accused the Commission on Presidential Debates of being "stacked with Trump Haters" and biased against him. "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," Trump wrote. "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)!"

He added, however, that he would "very much look forward" to debating the Democratic nominee. In response to the criticism, the commission denied Trump's accusation of bias and said its record was "one of fairness, balance, and non-partisanship," per Politico. One of Trump's specific beefs with the group is that his microphone wasn't working properly during his first debate with Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election. The commission later acknowledged that "there were issues regarding Donald Trump’s audio that affected the sound level in the debate hall," but Trump on Monday accused the group of "deliberately modulating" his microphone. (More President Trump stories.)