Debate commission to Donald Trump: The dates are set

The Commission on Presidential Debates responded to Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee's complaints about the debate schedule with a message on July 31: The schedule is set. "The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) started working more than 18 months ago to identify religious and federal holidays, baseball league playoff games, NFL games, and other events in order to select the best nights for the 2016 debates," the commission said. "It is impossible to avoid all sporting events, and there have been nights on which debates and games occurred in most election cycles. A debate has never been rescheduled as a result."

Donald Trump and RNC officials have complained that two of the three scheduled presidential and one vice-presidential debates overlap with NFL games. The presidential debates are slated for Sept 26 at New York’s Hofstra University, Oct 9 at Washington University in St. Louis and Oct 19 at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. The vice-presidential debate is set for Oct 4 at Longwood University in Virginia.