MSNBC analyst Eugene Robinson said Tuesday on “Morning Joe” that Donald Trump now “needs” to debate Kamala Harris ― even as her team provokes Trump by fighting to leave the microphones unmuted for the broadcast. (Watch the video below.)

Trump’s team pushed back against Harris’ request for hot mics in their scheduled Sept. 10 encounter on ABC, saying it already had agreed to terms to cut off candidates after their speaking time was up. It’s the same rule that governed President Joe Biden’s ill-fated debate with Trump in June on CNN. Biden then made way for Harris to become the Democratic nominee.

Harris’ campaign believes the unmuted approach will expose Trump to embarrassing moments, and an informed source told Politico that Harris would gladly spar with him if he interrupts her.

But Robinson, a Washington Post columnist, insisted that despite Trump’s repeated threats to back out, the former president increasingly senses he has no choice but to debate her.

“At this point, it looks to me as if Donald Trump believes he needs this debate more than Kamala Harris does,” Robinson said. “She has had the momentum.”

As for the sticking point of hot mics, Robinson said: “I think the Harris campaign is kinda messing with Trump and his campaign at this point by making this demand. I think, in the end, there will be a debate.”