Trump says first debate moderator Chris Wallace is controlled by radical Left: 'He'll ask me tough questions'
President Donald Trump is set to take on his Democratic rival Joe Biden for the November 3 election on September 29 and supporters from both sides are eager to see how the on-stage battle unfolds. The Trump campaign had been seeking a debate with Biden who it has often mocked as weak and unfit and alleged that the former vice president was advised to skip face-offs with the incumbent.
However, days before the first debate which will be held at Cleveland’s Case Western Reserve University, Trump's tone has apparently changed. He took a swipe at veteran journalist and Fox News host Chris Wallace, who will be moderating the show, saying he is being "controlled" by the Left. Wallace is known to be a tough interviewer across the political spectrum.
Even as he wanted to hold debates with Biden, Trump has long complained that he gets treated unfairly in debates and that his team has spent a lot of time negotiating better terms as he gears up to meet the 77-year-old former vice president.
The president is certainly going to face tricky questions on issues like the coronavirus pandemic and race riots that have plagued the country over the last few months. Perhaps, Trump anticipated that to tell 'Fox & Friends' co-host Brian Kilmeade on his radio show on Thursday, September 24: "He'll (Wallace) ask me tough questions and it'll be unfair, I have no doubt about it. But he'll be controlled by the radical Left. They control him."
The GOP leader then touted the ratings that he brought the seasoned journalist in their July interview. "Chris likes me because his world is all about ratings. I would be willing to bet that he won't ask Biden tough questions," Trump said.
The 72-year-old Wallace made Trump face a tricky interview in July. He countered the president's claim that he did well in a cognitive test, saying it was not the hardest test. "They have a picture and it says 'what's that' and it's an elephant,” Wallace said — even airing an image of the elephant picture during the broadcast. "No, no, no," Trump said, adding: "You see, that's all misrepresentation."
Trump, however, found Kilmeade defending Wallace during the latest interview. He said the veteran anchor is not controlled by anyone. To that, Trump said Wallace then also needs to ask difficult questions to Biden. It may be mentioned here that days after the interview with Trump, Wallace told viewers that the campaign of Biden, who was still a presumptive presidential candidate then, was "not available" for an interview after Trump alleged that the former VP couldn't handle tough questions from the anchor.
Fox’s Chris Wallace: "In our interview last week with President Trump, he questioned whether his opponent Joe Biden could handle a similar encounter. Well, we asked the Biden campaign for an interview and they said the former VP was not available. We'll keep asking every week.” pic.twitter.com/5BIbp6dQ02
— TV News HQ (@TVNewsHQ) July 26, 2020
Wallace asked Trump tough questions in 2016
September 29 will not see Trump facing Wallace as a debate moderator for the first time. In October 2016 — days before the presidential election that year — the tough interviewer in Wallace asked Trump some tricky questions as he took on Hillary Clinton in the third presidential debate in Nevada, including on the businessman-politician's indication that he would not respect the results of the election.
Trump still remembers that he complained during his interview with Kilmeade that he faced harder questions compared to Clinton during that debate. "I had it last year where ABC was asking Hillary Clinton these littler powder puff questions," Trump added.
The embattled president then targeted Biden saying the latter "has a tremendous advantage" because of his long career in politics. Biden has almost 50 years of experience in Washington DC. Trump, however, added that he has a "much better record" than the former vice president who had also served as a senator from Delaware for three and a half decades.
He also indicated that he could renew the attack on Biden's son Hunter who a recent GOP report accused of getting $3.5 million in fees from a woman billionaire in Russia, who is also the widow of a former mayor of Moscow.