WASHINGTON — Texas State University was set to be the first university in Texas to host a presidential debate, but on Wednesday the two candidates for president announced they’re going rogue.
The campaigns of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are remixing their plans for this year’s debate schedule, announcing two new debate dates hosted by CNN and ABC News. They are slated to take place on June 27 and Sept. 10.
Those debates appear to be in lieu of three previously scheduled fall debates — one of which is slated for Texas State — arranged by the Commission on Presidential Debates, which usually organizes debates after the primaries. Biden's campaign said in a letter to the Commission that he plans not to partake in its debates.
The new Sept. 10 debate announced by the campaigns on Wednesday is scheduled less than a week before the previously scheduled Sept. 16 debate at Texas State. It’s unclear whether Texas State will still have a chance to host. The June debate, hosted by CNN, will be in Georgia.
“We are aware of the latest developments surrounding the presidential debates. We are working closely with the Commission on Presidential Debates as we assess the situation,” the university said in a statement Wednesday.
ABC News did not say if the network would consider hosting the debate at Texas State.
Texas State was expecting to spend about $5 million to host its debate. The university had appointed Jack Martin, a former chair of the Texas State University System’s Board of Regents, to head the fundraising for the debate.
While news organizations often host primary debates, the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates was established in 1987 to provide a neutral forum for candidates ahead the general election. The commission said in a statement Wednesday that it had selected its dates and locations to “reach the widest television, radio and streaming audience.”
“The American public deserves substantive debates from the leading candidates for president and vice president,” the statement read. “Our 2024 sites, all locations of higher learning, are prepared to host debates on dates chosen to accommodate early voters. We will continue to be ready to execute this plan.”
The Trump and Biden campaigns had coordinated to arrange additional debate dates that would not involve the Commission, The Washington Post reported.
The two publicly agreed to the June and September dates, though Trump challenged Biden to have additional debates earlier in the cycle — in June, July, August and September — to “have maximum exposure to the records and future visions of each candidate,” according to a memo released by the Trump campaign.
In its letter to the commission, the Biden campaign said the commission's debate format was no longer up to date with current voting trends, taking place after early voting began in many states. It also said the commission failed to enforce its own rules in the 2020 debates.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, questioned the decision to "basically sink the Commission’s proposal."
"The Commission had already agreed to one presidential debate. It’s at Texas State University in San Marcos, so I hope that hasn’t gone by the wayside because I think that was a big coup for Chancellor [Brian] McCall and a chance for a lot of those students to be able to see a presidential debate in person,” Cornyn told reporters Wednesday.
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