COLUMBIA, South Carolina (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. disputed Donald Trump to a one-on-one debate when the two address a Libertarian convention later this month, a move that comes as the presumptive GOP nominee has stepped up both criticism of the Kennedy’s independent candidacy and the demands that the president Joe Biden meet him on a debate stage.
Claiming that he “attracts a lot of voters among your former supporters,” Kennedy told Trump in an open letter published Tuesday to X that the Libertarian convention offers “perfect neutral territory for you and me to have a debate where you can defend your record for your hesitant supporters.
Trump sounded optimistic in calling on Biden to debate him ahead of the November general election, but avoided previous instances of debating other rivals. Trump skipped 2024 GOP primary debatessaying it was unnecessary because voters know him and his record.
Kennedy, who challenged Biden last year for the Democratic nomination before launching an independent bid, argued that his relatively strong showings in a few national polls gave weight to his candidacy. Polls during the 2016 presidential campaign regularly placed support for Libertarian Gary Johnson in the single or double digits, but he ultimately only received about 3 percent of the vote nationally.
In the open letter to Trump, Kennedy said their debate could “show the American public that at least two of the leading candidates are not afraid to debate.” Kennedy wrote that convention organizers “are prepared to use our time there to bring the American people to the debate they deserve!” »
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Spokespeople for the Trump campaign and the Libertarian Party did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on Kennedy’s debate challenge.
Kennedy and Trump are expected to appear on separate days before participants in the National Libertarian Convention in Washington, DC later this month. Both candidates are seeking support from Libertarian-leaning voters, although Kennedy — who is working to appear on all 50 ballots, a state-by-state petition process — has ruled out officially running as a Libertarian candidate.
In recent weeks, Trump’s campaign has stepped up its attacks on Kennedy, who has appealed to disaffected Democrats and Republicans. looking for an alternative to the imminent rematch of the 2020 elections.
Last month, Trump wrote on Truth Social that “RFK Jr. is a ‘plant’ Democrat, a radical left-wing liberal who was put in place to help crooked Joe Biden.” » MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump’s candidacy, also published its own critical articles and created an anti-Kennedy website.
Leaving the court one day last week after his lawsuit for moneyTrump told reporters he did not feel threatened by Kennedy’s candidacy.
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Meg Kinnard can be contacted at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP
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Michelle L. Price and Ruth Brown in New York and Linley Sanders in Washington contributed to this report.
News Source : apnews.com
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