Trump rules out second TV debate with Harris

Former president says Democratic candidate should spend coming months focusing on illegal migration and inflation

Donald Trump has ruled out debating Kamala Harris for a second time before the US presidential election.
The former president said he would not appear on stage with Ms Harris again, arguing that she should spend the coming months focusing on illegal migration and inflation instead.
Trump and Ms Harris debated for the first time in Philadelphia on Tuesday, when she was widely considered to have won.
Her campaign immediately called for a second debate to be held before polling day, but Trump suggested afterwards that he would not be willing to participate again.
Writing on Truth Social on Thursday, he confirmed the decision and compared Ms Harris to a boxer calling for a rematch after losing a fight.
“When a prizefighter loses a fight, the first words out of his mouth are, ‘I WANT A REMATCH,’” he wrote. “Polls clearly show that I won the Debate against Comrade Kamala Harris, the Democrats’ Radical Left Candidate, on Tuesday night, and she immediately called for a Second Debate.
“She was a no-show at the Fox Debate, and refused to do NBC & CBS. KAMALA SHOULD FOCUS ON WHAT SHE SHOULD HAVE DONE DURING THE LAST ALMOST FOUR YEAR PERIOD. THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!”
Speaking at a rally in North Carolina on Thursday, Ms Harris told supporters: “Two nights ago, Donald Trump and I had our first debate. And I believe we owe it to the voters to have another debate, because this election and what is at stake could not be more important.”
Trump’s decision comes after he said he would debate Joe Biden as many times as possible before their head-to-head in June, when Mr Biden’s disastrous performance ultimately led to his resignation from the presidential race.
Some Republicans called for Trump to debate Ms Harris again after his attack lines were derailed by his lengthy asides on migration. 
After Ms Harris claimed that supporters at his rallies were “bored”, Trump falsely claimed that migrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating the pets of local residents.
Polls taken after the debate showed most American voters believe that Ms Harris won.
Dennis Lennox, a veteran Republican strategist, welcomed the decision and told The Telegraph that a second debate could have worsened Trump’s polling numbers with swing state voters.
“There was too much risk. Another debate would only serve to help Ms Harris,” he said. “With early voting starting, Trump and the former president’s allies need to focus on turning out the vote and winning Georgia, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
“Those are the only states that matter at this point in the campaign. This election will be won or lost by early October.”