Fox's Brian Kilmeade says Trump 'needs' 2nd debate that he refused: 'Virtual actually could be better for him'
Fox News host Brian Kilmeade has said that Donald Trump “needs” the virtual presidential debate 2020, although the president has said he won’t attend it, demanding an in-person face off. "I do think overall though, the president needs this. I think the president might be in a situation where virtual could actually be better for him,” Brian Kilmeade said as reported by Newsweek. Due to the Covid-19 risk and since the president himself got infected, the Commission of Presidential Debates (CPD) announced on Thursday, October 8, that the next debate will be held virtually. The CPD said the second face-off between Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden is expected to "take the form of a town meeting, in which candidates would participate from separate remote locations.” But the Republican leader did not like the idea and said: “I'm not going to do a virtual debate. I'm not going to waste my time at a virtual debate."
After contracting the virus, Trump spent three nights at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, before returning to the White House Monday evening, October 5. Shortly after his arrival at his official residence, he posted a video on his Twitter page, saying: “I just left Walter Reed Medical Center, and it’s really something very special — the doctors, the nurses, the first responders — and I learned so much about coronavirus. And one thing that’s for certain, don’t let it dominate you. Don’t be afraid of it. You’re gonna beat it. We have the best medical equipment; we have the best medicines — all developed recently — and you’re gonna beat it.”
Later, in a note White House physician Dr. Sean Conley mentioned that Trump can return to his "public engagements" on Saturday, October 10. In a memo released by White House, Conley said: “Since returning home, his physical exam has remained stable and devoid of any indications to the suggested progression of illness. Overall he's responded extremely well to treatment, without evidence on examination of adverse therapeutic effects. Saturday will be day 10 since Thursday's diagnosis and based on the trajectory of advanced diagnostics the team has been conducting, I fully anticipate the President's safe return to public engagements at that time."
“I think I'm going to try doing a rally on Saturday night if we have enough time to put it together. But we want to do a rally in Florida, probably in Florida on Saturday night," POTUS told Fox News host Sean Hannity in a telephonic interview on Thursday, October 8. As soon as Conley's confirmation came regarding Trump’s health, his re-election campaign pushed CPD to return to its original format of the debate. "There is therefore no medical reason why the Commission on Presidential Debates should shift the debate to a virtual setting, postpone it, or otherwise alter it in any way," a statement from the campaign noted.
Though Kilmeade was in favor of Trump participating in the virtual debate, he was shocked that the CPD "did not consult with” Trump and Biden campaigns before taking the decision. "I just find it totally bizarre that the debate committee would not meet and discuss this first. For the longest time, we heard this is the date that this is happening. You know the Trump team came out and said 'I'm a little concerned,'” the 56-year-old said. “In this era of early voting, by the time these debates start, millions of people would have voted already. By the time the last one's done, about 25 to 50 million people have voted already.” Kilmeade also stated that the CPD can easily enhance their Covid-19 safety measures and expand testing to keep the debate in its original format.