Wasserman Schultz agrees to debate her primary opponent

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) announced Thursday that she will debate her primary opponent, a law professor backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

{mosads}”I have always said that when we got to August, that I would focus on the question of whether or not I was going to debate my opponent,” she told the Sun-Sentinel. “I am going to debate my opponent.”

Her challenger, Tim Canova, hailed the announcement but said he was skeptical that Wasserman Schultz will follow through.

“I was happy to hear news that Debbie Wasserman Schultz says that she will debate me,” he said in a statement. “I will believe it when I see it. Four months ago, I proposed a series of six debates to cover a wide range of issues. Wasserman Schultz has dodged debates for four months and she’s been dodging her own constituents for even longer.”

While Canova counts Sanders, a former White House contender, among his backers, Wasserman Schultz has been endorsed by President Obama and Vice President Biden, who will be fundraising for her on Friday.

But she had a rough week last week at the Democratic nominating convention, after hacked Democratic National Committee emails were released that showed top officials working against the Sanders campaign. The fallout forced her to resign as DNC chairwoman and she barely participated in the convention she had helped plan.