In this way, Trump responded to the invitation made by CNN to celebrate another debate on October 23 with Democrat Kamala Harris, who immediately accepted.

“The problem with another debate is that it is too late, voting has already started,” said the former president, adding that his rival wants a new face-to-face before the elections “because she is losing resoundingly.”

Trump spoke from a stage surrounded by bulletproof glass, as is the case at his outdoor rallies since the attempted attack on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a 20-year-old gunman shot him in the ear.

The rally in Wilmington was not attended -as expected- by the lieutenant governor of North Carolina, Mark Robinson, supported by Trump in his candidacy for governor. Robinson is at the center of a strong controversy following a journalistic investigation that delved into his past. A decade ago, he said on a pornographic site that he was a “black Nazi” and also called for restoring slavery.

The Trump campaign referred to a previous comment by the former president that said there would be no other debate.

“See his previous post on Truth,” said spokesman Steven Cheung, to the television station in response to whether the former president would accept the invitation to the debate.

Trump wrote last week on Truth Social: “THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!”, referring to the first debate with President Joe Biden on June 27 and the second with Harris on September 10.

Harris’ team did not pay much attention to the announcement because the former president “changes his position every day.”

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