Former Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday told reporters the second presidential debate should be canceled if President Donald Trump still has the Wuhan coronavirus.
"I'm not sure what President Trump is all about now. I don't know what his status is. I'm looking forward to being able to debate him, but I just hope all the protocols are followed," he explained.
A reporter in the pool asked if the former vice president would feel safe at the next debate.
"Well, uh, I think if he still has COVID, we shouldn't have a debate," Biden replied.
Another reporter asked him to clarify.
“I think we’re going to have to follow very strict guidelines. Too many people have been infected. It’s a very serious problem, so I will be guided by the guidelines of the Cleveland Clinic and what the docs say is the right thing to do," he said.
Biden said he was tested earlier in the day and the results came back negative. Despite that, he has no idea what the ground rules would be for next week's scheduled debate.
“I’m not sure what President Trump is all about now. I don’t know what his status is. I’m looking forward to being able to debate him, but I just hope all the protocols are followed,” @JoeBiden says of Oct 15 debate, but adds if Trump still has COVID “we shouldn’t have a debate” pic.twitter.com/0HrdYZq73l
— Molly Nagle (@MollyNagle3) October 7, 2020
Trump's Deputy Campaign Manager, David Bossie, said earlier this week that a second presidential debate would take place, even if it has to be pushed back slightly because of the president's COVID diagnosis.
“The debates are going to happen. There’s no reason for them not to. If they have to be pushed — if the second debate has to be pushed a day or two, that’s nothing. We need this president to recover. But he’s a fighter and he’s a fighter for the American people. That’s why he was elected to begin with. And he is such a fighter. He’s going to beat COVID and Joe Biden all at the same time," Bossie explained.
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