While President Joe Biden called out former President Donald Trump on Wednesday to debate him in June, not everyone thinks it was a good decision, including some top Democrats.
While speaking with CNN on Wednesday, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) shared her trepidation with Biden debating Trump, which both men agreed to do on CNN on June 27.
“I myself would never recommend going on stage with Donald Trump,” Pelosi told CNN’s Manu Raju. “But the president has decided that’s what he wants to do. I think the format he is suggesting is a good one.”
The format will include no live audience, a moderator who has yet to be determined, and the debate to be hosted by CNN at its TV studio. The second debate will take place on Sept. 10 and will be hosted by ABC.
Pelosi was asked by Raju why she didn’t think Biden should join Trump on the debate stage, to which the former Speaker said he didn’t uphold respect for his opponents.
“I think he was stalking Hillary Clinton. He wasn’t professional. He wasn’t presidential. He wasn’t meeting the dignity of the office,” Pelosi said, Raju reported.
Pelosi said that Trump’s past debate behavior, like when he appeared to physically intimidate Clinton on stage, did not earn him another chance at squaring off with Biden.
Reports shared that during the 2020 debates, Trump interrupted Biden and the moderator more than 100 times.
Still, Pelosi acknowledged the importance of the debates, suggesting that the networks hosting the debates hold town hall meetings to let the candidates present themselves to the American public.
“I think you all should have separate town hall meetings with them, and let them, challenge them with questions about the future, and let the public make its decision,” Pelosi said.