Donald Trump says he is 'done' with the Commission for Presidential Debates

Despite saying how excited he was to "beat" Hillary Clinton yet again in their third and final presidential debate, Donald Trump seemed to suggest Wednesday that he might skip the Las Vegas face-off next week because of his frustrations with the Commission for Presidential Debates. "I have no respect for that group by the way," Trump said Wednesday at a rally in Florida. "I'm done."
He announced to the crowd that he'd "just found" out that the organization's "head guy used to work for Bill Clinton," suggesting the nonpartisan, nonprofit group that oversees the debates is biased. What Trump failed to note, however, is that the other co-chair of the commission is a former Republican National Committee chairman.
When The Daily Beast's Olivia Nuzzi asked Trump communications director Jason Miller what exactly Trump meant by saying he was "done" with the debate commission, Miller insisted Trump "looks forward to the third debate."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Facial recognition vans and policing
The government is rolling out more live facial recognition technology across England
-
Dive in! The best children's books to spark a love of reading
The Week Recommends These gripping stories will keep kids hooked until the last page
-
Crossword: August 13, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
-
Trump picks conservative BLS critic to lead BLS
speed read He has nominated the Heritage Foundation's E.J. Antoni to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics
-
Trump takes over DC police, deploys National Guard
Speed Read The president blames the takeover on rising crime, though official figures contradict this concern
-
Trump sends FBI to patrol DC, despite falling crime
Speed Read Washington, D.C., 'has become one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world,' Trump said
-
Trump officials reinstating 2 Confederate monuments
Speed Read The administration has plans to 'restore Confederate names and symbols' discarded in the wake of George Floyd's 2020 murder
-
Trump nominates Powell critic for vacant Fed seat
speed read Stephen Miran, the chair of Trump's Council of Economic Advisers and a fellow critic of Fed chair Jerome Powell, has been nominated to fill a seat on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors
-
ICE scraps age limits amid hiring push
Speed Read Anyone 18 or older can now apply to be an ICE agent
-
Trump's global tariffs take effect, with new additions
Speed Read Tariffs on more than 90 US trading partners went into effect, escalating the global trade war
-
House committee subpoenas Epstein files
Speed Read The House Oversight Committee has issued a subpoena to the Justice Department for its Jeffrey Epstein files with an Aug. 19 deadline