Harris preps for debate with Google lawyer, creating 'conflict of interest,' Trump campaign says

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Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign stop in Virginia after attending a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington Cemetery.

The Trump campaign is calling out a potential conflict of interest ahead of the first presidential debate. 

The Trump campaign told Fox News Digital that Karen Dunn, who is part of the team prepping Vice President Kamala Harris for the Sept. 10 showdown, is simultaneously working as Google’s lead defense attorney in the Biden-Harris administration’s lawsuit against the tech giant. 

That lawsuit, United States v. Google LLC is the Biden-Harris administration’s antitrust lawsuit targeting Google’s digital advertising practices. The trial is set to begin Sept. 9 — a day before the first presidential debate. 

Dunn, who is Google’s outside counsel through law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, is listed in the lawsuit as a "lead attorney." 

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Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. (Getty Images)

Dunn also advised Harris ahead of her 2020 vice presidential debate against then-Vice President Mike Pence. 

"Kamala Harris will never stand up to Big Tech because she’s being coached on what to say in the debates by Google’s top lawyer," Trump campaign senior adviser Tim Murtaugh told Fox News Digital. "Think about how outrageous it is — their administration is suing Google, but Harris is taking political advice from the defendant’s lawyer." 

Murtaugh said, "any first year law student knows that’s a conflict of interest." 

"But it’s not surprising because Big Tech and the Biden-Harris White House have been conspiring to censor and trample the rights of law-abiding citizens since they gained power," he said. 

Murtaugh added, "They don’t even try to hide their cozy relationship — it’s all been reported by the media — but it is disgusting and dangerous." 

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at the Desert Diamond Arena on Friday, Aug. 23, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Murtaugh pointed to reports by The Washington Post and Bloomberg News last month that said Dunn had joined the newly minted Harris campaign to, again, help with debate prep. 

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"Some prosecutor she is," Murtaugh said. "She's being coached by the defendant's lawyer." 

Neither the Harris campaign nor Dunn responded to Fox News Digital's request for comment. 

The revelations also come after Google came under scrutiny following the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. Google’s autocomplete search results did not initially register the July 13 assassination attempt against Trump. 

Google admitted that it initially blocked and eliminated search prompts for the assassination attempt against Trump, saying they were prohibited by design and part of the company’s policy to prevent search results for "hypothetical political violence against current figures." 

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris takes the stage on Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago on Aug. 22, 2024. (REUTERS/Brendan Mcdermid)

"We do not allow predictions that can be interpreted as accusations against individuals or groups of serious malevolent acts, where there is a lack of well-established or expert supporting evidence," he said. 

Meanwhile, the Harris campaign is clashing with the Trump campaign over debate rules for the Sept. 10 debate. The vice president's campaign is seeking to have microphones live throughout the event, despite the fact that the original agreement had microphones muted unless the candidate was directed to speak. 

"We have told ABC and other networks seeking to host a possible October debate that we believe both candidates’ mics should be live throughout the full broadcast," Harris campaign senior adviser for communications Brian Fallon said in a statement Monday. 

"Our understanding is that Trump’s handlers prefer the muted microphone because they don’t think their candidate can act presidential for 90 minutes on his own," Fallon said. "We suspect Trump’s team has not even told their boss about this dispute because it would be too embarrassing to admit they don’t think he can handle himself against Vice President Harris without the benefit of a mute button." 

Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. (Getty Images)

"The Vice President is ready to deal with Trump’s constant lies and interruptions in real time. Trump should stop hiding behind the mute button." 

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However, Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller is firing back, telling the Harris campaign, "enough with the games," and accusing them of trying to "get out" of the debate against the former president. 

"We accepted the ABC debate under the exact same terms as the CNN debate. The Harris camp, after having already agreed to the CNN rules, asked for a seated debate, with notes, and opening statements. We said no changes to the agreed upon rules," Miller said in a statement. "If Kamala Harris isn’t smart enough to repeat the messaging points her handlers want her to memorize, that’s their problem." 

Miller said this is 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," Miller said. "My guess is that they’re looking for a way to get out of any debate with President Trump." 

He added, "Regardless, there’s no way Harris is ready to be Commander in Chief." 

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Regarding Harris' debate prep with Dunn, Murtaugh chimed in. 

"Isn't it funny that the Harris camp is starting to complain about debate rules again, now that they've actually begun to prep their candidate with Karen Dunn's help?" Murtaugh told Fox News Digital. "I guess Google's lawyer sees something they don't like, and now they're panicking."