Former President Trump will rally supporters Saturday at the Coachella Valley Polo Grounds in a state he lost by more than 29 percentage points four years ago, less than a month before a runoff election was widely expected .
Trump’s planned late-afternoon appearance at Calhoun Ranch, just outside the city of Coachella, when temperatures topped 100 degrees caused head-scratching among local Republicans given the state’s deep blue color. The last GOP presidential candidate to win the state was George H.W. Bush in 1988; Since 2008, Democrats have received more than 60% of the state’s vote.
The most common reason for White House candidates to visit California is to raise money from the state’s large number of wealthy donors, because trump And Democratic candidate Kamala Harris Did it recently.
However, although Trump has raised money in the desert as recently as 2020 at a high-dollar event at Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison’s Rancho Mirage estate, there were no reports of any fundraising during the former president’s visit here this week. Has not come.
Even if the former president doesn’t headline a formal fundraiser, he may meet with influential and moneyed supporters among the area’s palm-lined golf courses and gated communities.
“No doubt he’s going to do something in the desert. There’s a lot of money there,” said a California Republican strategist with close ties to the Trump campaign.
He said the former president had been trying to organize such an event in California for at least a year, but had to work on finding a setting that could accommodate thousands of people in a Democrat-run city or county. Were not. Which may hinder his plans. The Coachella Valley provides the ideal location for Trump to speak about border and water issues as well as Harris’ record.
“It’s a point of pride for President Trump,” said this strategist, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly about conversations with the campaign. “He fought in New York. He’s going to fight in California. He’s leaving nothing on the table.”
Trump’s campaign said the former president was coming to the state to highlight Harris’ record here.
“Kamala Harris has caused unimaginable harm to California during her six years as the most liberal attorney general in the state’s history, and she has caused even greater harm to our country as vice president,” spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement. Is.” “President Trump’s Coachella visit will highlight Harris’s failed record and show that she has the right solutions to save every state and every American.”
The Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment Monday evening.
former president made Similar arguments about Harris At a press conference at his golf course in Rancho Palos Verdes, the day after a fundraiser in Beverly Hills in mid-September.
Presidential candidates generally avoid going to California to raise money closer to the election – Harris’ last trip to her home state to fundraise Before Election Day in late September. Trump broke this tradition Earlier, when he held a Tony fundraiser on Lido Isle in Newport Beach a little more than two weeks before the 2020 election.
Coachella is also close to the battleground states of Arizona and Nevada, which Trump may visit during his Western tour. Details of his schedule are still emerging, but he is expected to be in Aurora, Colo., on Friday. He will hold a rally in Washington, D.C., a city he falsely claims has been taken over by Venezuelan gang members. (The city’s Republican mayor has rejected Trump’s claims, which appear to stem from Dispute between the city and a landownerAccording to the New York Times.)
A second veteran GOP strategist from California said Trump wants to boost Republican turnout in the state. Despite its Democratic leanings, the state is home to more than 5.5 million Republicans, the most of any state that asks voters to state party preference.
“People always forget that we have more Republicans than any other state. The problem is that our numbers are too low,” this person said, before he heard from Rep. Ken Calvert, who is one of the tough re-election contest This will be crucial in determining which party controls Congress, he said, asking the former president to campaign for him.
“At some point, Calvert asked them to come out, as I would suspect almost every member of Congress would probably ask (top party leaders) to come out,” said this person who is with Calvert’s team. The Friendly and Listens Corona Republican, who is the longest-serving GOP member of California’s congressional delegation, will attend the event.
Calvert’s campaign denied that the congressman had requested Trump to campaign for them and said it was uncertain whether the congressman would attend the event, which is taking place just outside his district.
“It was definitely not a request from us. “Like everyone else, we found out about it (on Monday),” spokesman Jason Gagnon said. “We are not sure whether he is participating in this or not. “As you would imagine with this campaign and everything else, our schedule has been crazy.”
Democrats supporting Will Rollins, the former federal prosecutor who is challenging Calvert, were skeptical and pointed to actions taken by Trump that they say have harmed Californians.
“Even when Trump tried to block disaster aid for our firefighters, raised Californians’ taxes to reward friends in other states, and bragged about taking away reproductive freedom from women , Ken Calvert is right there, sitting on Trump’s lap, applauding,” said Dan Gottlieb, spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Riverside County deserves a leader who cares more about his own voters than a convicted fraudster.”
Calvert and Rollins are locked in a tight race to represent a large portion of Riverside County, a recount his 2022 raceWho Calvert won by less than five percentage pointsAlthough Rollins lost, he attracted the attention of national Democratic leaders and donors, and the race has been rated a “toss-up” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, one of several California congressional races that depend on the House. Can determine control.
Saturday’s event is being held at a property owned by a company controlled by the family of major GOP donors. (He also owns the property that hosts the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach Festival.)
According to OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan, nonprofit group that tracks election finance, Alexander Hagen III and Alexander Hagen IV wired hundreds of thousands to the Republican National Committee, a pro-Trump dark-money group, and other GOP groups and candidates. Dollars have been contributed. Federal Election Commission.
An email sent to the family company seeking comment did not elicit any response on Monday.
