Former President Donald Trump will have the final words in the first presidential debate, CNN announced Thursday.
President Joe Biden’s campaign won the coin toss and chose to pick where Biden would stand on the stage. Trump’s campaign then got to choose who spoke last.
“Former President Donald Trump will get the final word when he debates President Joe Biden on CNN next week, after a coin flip to determine podium placement and the order of closing statements. The coin landed on the Biden campaign’s pick — tails — which meant his campaign got to choose whether it wanted to select the president’s podium position or the order of closing statements,” CNN, which is hosting the debate, said in a statement. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Inside Trump’s Meeting With House Republicans)
Ahead of the debate, the two campaigns agreed to terms, such as microphones being cut off when it is not that person’s turn to speak, no live audience and pre-written notes, and two commercial breaks.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential nominee, right, listens during the U.S. presidential debate at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020. (Photographer: Kevin Dietsch/UPI/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Biden’s campaign chose to select the right podium position, which means the Democratic president will be on the right side of television viewers’ screens and his Republican rival will be on viewers’ left. Trump’s campaign then chose for the former president to deliver the last closing statement, which means Biden will go first at the conclusion of the debate,” they continued. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Inside The Republican National Convention, A Look At The Massive Stage Set-Up Where Trump Will Accept The Nomination)
Meanwhile, during the debate, many of Trump’s potential picks for vice president will be at a watch party hosted by the Republican National Committee (RNC) and former Republican Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler. Republican South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, who is also reportedly a potential pick for vice president, will reportedly be attending the debate with Trump.
