Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. issued a statement panning qualifications to debate with former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden next month.
Shortly after Trump and Biden agreed to a debate hosted by CNN next month, the outlet issued qualifications for fellow presidential candidates to participate.
Per CNN's press release, a candidate's name must appear on a "sufficient" amount of state ballots to receive 270 electoral votes, and receive at least 15% support in four separate national polls of registered likely voters.
According to several polls from FiveThirtyEight, New York Times, and Marist College, Kennedy is performing between 10 and 14 percent on a national average.
The independent candidate responded to the terms of the debate in a Wednesday X post.
"President Trump and Biden are colluding to lock America into a head-to-head match-up that 70% say they do not want," Kennedy wrote. "They are trying to exclude me from their debate because they are afraid I would win."
Kennedy added, "Keeping viable candidates off the debate stage undermines democracy."
"Forty-three percent of Americans identify as independents. If Americans are ever going to escape the hammerlock of the two-party system, now is the time to do it," he continued, referring to Trump and Biden as "the two most unpopular candidates in living memory."
"By excluding me from the stage, Presidents Biden and Trump seek to avoid discussion of their eight years of mutual failure including deficits, wars, lockdowns, chronic disease, and inflation," Kennedy added.
On Wednesday morning, President Biden released a video announcing he was willing to participate in two presidential debates with Trump.
“Donald Trump lost two debates to me in 2020, and since then he hasn’t shown up for a debate. Now he is acting like he wants to debate me again," Biden said. "Well, make my day, pal. I’ll even do it twice."
Trump responded to Biden's offer saying the president was the "WORST debater [he] had ever faced."
"Crooked is also the WORST President in the history of the United States, by far," Trump continued. "It’s time for a debate so that he can explain to the American People his highly destructive Open Border Policy, new and ridiculous EV Mandates, the allowance of Crushing Inflation, High Taxes, and his really WEAK Foreign Policy, which is allowing the World to 'Catch on Fire.'"
The former president went on to suggest more than two debates should be held for "excitement purposes."
Later Wednesday, Trump officially accepted Biden's two debate offers, which will be held by CNN and ABC on Jun. 27th and Sept. 10th respectively.
"Joe Biden is the WORST PRESIDENT in the history of the United States and a true threat to democracy," Trump added.
The CNN debate will be moderated by Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, Mediaite reports.
