(Photo : Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 29: U.S. President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden participate in the first presidential debate at the Health Education Campus of Case Western Reserve University on September 29, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. This is the first of three planned debates between the two candidates in the lead up to the election on November 3.
Trump and Biden will partake in separate town halls on Thursday night. Trump will be from an NBC News town hall, whereas Democratic Joe Biden will be from ABC.
Initially Canceled Presidential Debate
The Democratic and Republican candidates were initially slated to participate in the second presidential debate on Thursday evening. However, the event was eventually canceled after President Donald Trump declined to participate in a virtual debate. This was declared by the Commission on Presidential Debates in light of Trump testing positive for COVID-19, reported MSN.
The event is in lieu of a presidential debate wherein voters would have witnessed Donald Trump and Joe Biden engage with each other to discuss issues in a face-off. Both town hall events are slated for 8 PM ET.
Trump's hour-long town hall event would be moderated by "Today" anchor Savannah Gutherie while Biden would partake in his own event on the same evening. Guthrie would be moderating a discussion between Trump and Florida voters on various issues. It would initiate outdoors at Miami's Pérez Art Museum following measures imposed by local health officials.
Thursday was initially the day the second presidential debate would have taken place, reported WPRI-TV.
The next and final debate between Trump and Biden would occur on October 22 in Nashville, Tennessee.
"The event is set to take place outdoors and under the guidelines set forth by health officials, also consistent with all government regulations," according to Hoda Kotb on NBC's "Today" show on Wednesday, reported KETV.
Also Read: Trump: COVID-19 Negative, Not Infectious - White House Doctors
In a statement issued to NBC News, Trump is no longer a high-risk COVID-19 transmitter, asserted the National Institutes of Health Clinical Director Clifford Lane. This conclusion was determined via PCR test analysis.
Safety Measures in the Debate to Be Implemented
Guthrie would be positioned 12 feet from the incumbent president while attendees would be instructed to wear face masks.
Plans for a Town Hall Event
In the previous week, Trump's decision to back out of the 2nd debate resulted in Biden and ABC immediately declaring their plans for a town hall event.
Trump's team negotiated with NBC regarding a town hall on the condition that Trump had a negative diagnosis for the novel coronavirus.
Trump is trailing behind in all national polls and either behind or tied with Biden in battleground states. He is reportedly in greater need of a national platform for an opportunity to argue his case to voters. There are less than three weeks to go before the November 3 presidential election.
Biden will partake in a town hall event for an hour and 3 minutes on ABC. It will be moderated by "GMA" anchor George Stephanopoulos in Philadelphia.
Both town hall events will begin at 5 PM PT.
The confirmation that Trump is no longer a high-risk coronavirus transmitted was first divulged on October 2. The president was admitted to the hospital for four days. He has immediately resumed work in the Oval Office, fortifying campaign events where masses have gathered.
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