I've been suspecting that Kamala Harris will back out of the debate with Trump.

Why should she expose herself when running on nothing — AKA "joy" — has been working so well?

But suddenly here's news that Trump might be in the process of weaseling out of the debate:

At CNN: "Trump campaign casts fresh doubt on September debate with Harris over microphone dispute." We're told that "a source familiar with the matter" is telling CNN that "Trump’s campaign is casting fresh doubt on whether the September 10th debate will take place on ABC." Trump himself has written: "Why would I do the Debate against Kamala Harris on that network?" But what is the "microphone dispute"? I'm seeing: "The Harris campaign is requesting that ABC and other networks seeking to host a potential October debate keep microphones on, according to a senior campaign official." That relates to an October debate, and the doubt is coming from the Harris campaign, not Trump's. And isn't it funny that the tables have turned on who wants the microphones to shut off?

At The Washington Post: "Trump suggests he might skip ABC debate with Harris/The Sept. 10 debate with ABC is the only one both campaigns have agreed to do with one of the major networks." This piece begins with the Trump statement, "Why would I do the Debate against Kamala Harris on [ABC]?" And this article too shows the Harris campaign attempting to change the rules: "Brian Fallon, the Harris campaign’s senior adviser for communications, said in a statement, that the campaign has told ABC and other networks that 'both candidates’ mics should be live throughout the full broadcast.'"

At Politico: "Playbook: Scoop: The secret debate about the Trump-Harris debate." Here, we're told that before Trump published that question —  "Why would I do the Debate against Kamala Harris on [ABC]" — "the two campaigns hit an impasse over the rules of the debate, according to four sources familiar with the issue." Politico isn't pointing at either campaign. They hit an impasse together. But it's the Harris campaign that's trying to change the rules: "Harris’ campaign wants the mics to be hot at all times during the ABC debate, as has historically been the case at presidential debates." A Trump adviser, Jason Miller, is citing other rule changes the Harris campaign has supposedly asked for: "a seated debate, with notes, and opening statements." He says: "This seems to be a pattern for the Harris campaign. They won’t allow Harris to do interviews, they won’t allow her to do press conferences, and now they want to give her a cheat-sheet for the debate. My guess is that they’re looking for a way to get out of any debate with President Trump." 

Aha! That's been my suspicion: It's Harris who's trying to get by without debating.