Kamala Harris and JD Vance have spoken, but have yet to agree on terms for a vice presidential debate

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris And Republican JD Vance The two men had their first discussion Tuesday since the Ohio senator became the Republican vice presidential nominee, but the two sides are still working out the terms of participation in a debate, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Harris has agreed to participate in a debate on CBS News on July 23 or August 13. Two months ago, former President Donald Trump agreed on these same datesor one later in the calendar, on behalf of his then-unidentified running mate — but for a debate on Fox News, which Biden’s team has indicated it will reject.

The people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal conversations about the debate, said there has been no progress in overcoming disagreements over the network partner and format, but they expect discussions to begin now that Trump has chosen Vance, a first-term senator from Ohio.

In his congratulatory voicemail to Vance on his selection Monday, Harris urged him to accept the CBS debate, according to one of the people familiar with the discussions. Vance called Harris back Tuesday, and the two exchanged pleasantries, that person said. A second person said they shared a desire to debate, but did not discuss specifics.

Last month’s debate disaster for President Joe Biden, the assassination attempt on Trump on Saturday and the ages of the two men at the top of their respective ticket could raise the stakes in the potential running mate showdown.

“Vice President Harris is ready to debate J.D. Vance,” Biden campaign spokesman TJ Ducklo told reporters Monday after Vance was added to the Republican ticket. “We accepted the offer from CBS News — I think people know — to participate in that debate, and we feel very good about it.”

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren told reporters on a conference call with Biden’s campaign team: “The vice president will defer to J.D. Vance.”

“The debate will take place in two parts,” she continued. “It will be about determining the strength of our vice president and the relevance of her economic proposals. I look forward to this debate.”

Trump sought to find a candidate who could compete with Harris, and that was where Vance stood out.

Vance first came to Trump’s attention during his 2022 Senate campaign — a fiercely contested primary in which candidates often appeared to be competing more for Trump’s approval than for Republican votes.

As Trump assessed the field, the candidates gathered for a heated debate in which two of Vance’s rivals an almost physical altercation on stage.

The debate became intense from the start, when former state Treasurer Josh Mandel attacked investment banker Mike Gibbons’ business dealings in his opening remarks. Soon, the two men were face-to-face on the debate stage, yelling at each other as the moderator tried to keep their argument from escalating further.

But instead of jumping into the fray, Vance tried to be the bigger man.

“Sit down. Come on,” he said, sitting down in the same row as the other candidates. “This is ridiculous.”

Vance, an Army veteran, also criticized Mandel, calling him a “disgrace” for using the Marine Corps as a “political football,” prompting loud applause from the crowd. “What a joke,” he said.

The performance caught Trump’s attention and helped Vance win crucial support from the former president.

The Trump campaign did not respond Tuesday when asked whether Vance would accept either of the two dates proposed by CBS.

Trump had said he hoped Harris and her potential running mate would meet at Virginia State University, where Fox offered to host his event.

The university was originally scheduled to host a debate organized by the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, and it would have been the first time a historically black college or university had hosted one.

Virginia’s two senators, Democrats Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, urged the candidates to hold a debate at the school anyway.

CBS would host the debate in one of the network’s studios, which is the Biden team’s preference.

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Colvin reported from Milwaukee. AP reporters Seung Min Kim and Michelle L. Price in Milwaukee contributed to this report.