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- A debate between South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democratic challenger Jaime Harrison was canceled after Graham refused to get tested for COVID-19.
- Harrison demanded on Thursday that Graham take a COVID-19 test before they got together on the debate stage.
- The two candidates will separately participate in interviews with local reporters instead.
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A debate between South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and his Democratic challenger Jaime Harrison was canceled after Graham refused to take a COVID-19 test.
The debate was scheduled for Friday night, but now Graham and Harrison will separately conduct 30-minute interviews with the local CBS News affiliate, WSPA-TV, The Post and Courier reported.
On Thursday, Harrison demanded Graham take a COVID-19 test before they debated.
“I’m excited for tomorrow’s debate with @LindseyGrahamSC, but we need real leadership in this pandemic. The debate moderators and I have agreed to take a COVID test prior to debating. I’ve scheduled my test, and I am calling on Sen. Graham to do the same,” Harrison said in a tweet.
Graham accused Harrison of “demanding special treatment” and “ducking the debate.”
President Donald Trump last week announced a positive coronavirus diagnosis. The announcement came days after he attended the first debate against Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
On Thursday, a leaked Federal Emergency Management Agency memo revealed that thirty-four White House staffers and other contacts have been infected with COVID-19 in recent days. At least a dozen people who were around the president following an event in the Rose Garden on September 26, have also said they tested positive for the coronavirus, including two Republican senators.