Donald Trump and his campaign advisers were mocked by a former Barack Obama aide Monday as the drama surrounding presidential debates flared.
Trump had agreed to President Joe Biden's request that debate microphones be muted when the debaters are asked direct questions, but now-presidential candidate Kamala Harris wants that rule changed — and for open mics to be open throughout.
Trump's team pushed back, though Trump contradicted them, saying he'd prefer the microphones on.
But now it is unclear whether Trump will show up to the first scheduled debate, planned with ABC News for September 10.
Read Also: How Trump's new gibberish speeches are alienating swing voters
Speaking to MSNBC on Monday, former Obama campaign manager Jim Messina called giving Trump the microphone a great idea.
"The truth is the more this race is about Donald Trump, the more people remember why they didn't like him in the first place," Messina said. "I kind of get it from the Trump campaign. They're like, look, we can't make this about Donald Trump because, after three presidential elections, everyone has an opinion about Donald Trump. We have to try to go define Kamala Harris."
But "the worst way to do that," Messina continued, is to have Trump blasting "crazy stuff all over the national networks."
He confessed that if Trump was his candidate, he'd want a mute button as well.
"The Harris campaign absolutely wants people to see Donald Trump in his actual, real live environment and see all the crazy things he's likely going to want to say," he said.
"So, once again, you have the Harris campaign that is just playing major league baseball with a Trump campaign that is fighting in front of the national networks with their candidate. These guys can't shoot straight. They're sitting on their couches wanting to go crazy as their candidate says nutty things 71 days before the election," Messina closed.
See his comments below or at the link here.
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