Sanders and Clinton Agree to Debate in NYC, Sanders Campaign Says
(DNAINFO) Danielle Tcholakian and Julia Bottles | April 4, 2016 — The Sanders campaign plans to move a rally in Washington Square Park to accommodate the debate.
Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders have agreed to a debate in Brooklyn on April 14, according to CNN, which will host the debate.
The Democratic presidential candidates will appear on CNN and NY1 just five days before the New York primary election, although initial reports did not name a specific location for the debate.
The announcement came just hours after Sanders campaign spokesman Michael Briggs told DNAinfo New York that the Vermont senator would speak at a rally in Washington Square Park on April 14 but might change the plan if the campaign acquiesced to the Clinton campaign’s request to hold a debate that same night.
In a separate statement Monday evening, Briggs said the campaign would move the Washington Square Park rally to April 13.
The campaign had previously been secretive about the location of its rally, indicating only that it had secured a “difficult to obtain” permit for a “highly coveted Manhattan location.”
The two campaigns had been sparring over potential debate dates, as POLITICO reported. The Washington Square Park location was first reported by POLITICO, after a campaign staffer mentioned it on CNN.
Mayor Bill de Blasio inserted himself into the fray earlier on Monday by vowing to secure for the candidate any permit he needs as long as he agrees to debate Clinton on April 14 in Brooklyn.