“At long last, we discover his spirit animal: The Chicken,” Plouffe posted, amplifying the sentiment across social media.
Trump had earlier taken to his Truth Social platform to declare there would be no rematch with Harris, despite polls indicating a close contest in their previous debate. Trump claimed, “Polls clearly show that I won the debate against Comrade Kamala Harris… She and Crooked Joe have destroyed our country.” His statement, filled with criticism of Harris and President Joe Biden, dismissed any need for a third debate.
Harris’s campaign wasn’t the only one to go after Trump. Social media erupted with netizens ridiculing the former president for backing out. One user shared a cartoon of Trump hiding behind a door asking, “Is Kamala gone?”—a jab at his reluctance to face her on stage again.
Another user shared an old clip of Trump from his television days, captioned with, “This man says there will be no third debate,” further mocking his refusal to engage in another face-off with the vice president.
Trump’s critics weren’t limited to social media, as many questioned his commitment to future debates. After initially agreeing to debate Harris on Fox News on September 4, Trump later canceled, opting only for the ABC debate on September 10, which had been pre-arranged. His change of stance added fuel to the fire, with many accusing him of trying to avoid tough moderators or a challenging opponent in Harris.
A Harris supporter posted a scathing remark, saying, “‘THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!’ screams the scared, old, demented, racist, rapist, convicted felon Trump. Too chicken to debate. Too scared to lead the US”
Meanwhile, Trump slammed ABC News moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis, accusing them of bias and labeling the debate as “three against one” in favor of Harris. He also claimed Harris had skipped other networks, like Fox, fueling further criticism.