LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥 Former President will campaign Friday in Western states as his opponent, Vice President keeps her focus on one of the biggest battleground prizes in the East, Pennsylvania.
Trump is scheduled to hold what鈥檚 being billed as a news conference in the morning at his Los Angeles-area golf club before heading to northern California for a fundraiser, followed by a rally in Las Vegas, the largest city in swing state Nevada.
Harris, meanwhile, heads to Johnstown and Wilkes-Barre on Friday as she tries to capitalize on her . It鈥檚 her second day of back-to-back rallies after holding two events in North Carolina, another swing state, on Thursday.
While speaking in Charlotte, Harris took a victory lap for her debate performance in which she needled Trump and kept him on the defensive. Recounting one moment while campaigning in North Carolina, she mocked Trump for saying he had 鈥渃oncepts of a plan鈥 for replacing the Affordable Care Act.
鈥淐oncepts. Concepts. No actual plan. Concepts,鈥 she said as the crowd roared with laughter.
Her campaign said she raised $47 million from 600,000 donors in the 24 hours after her debate with Trump.
Harris said the candidates 鈥渙we it to voters to have another debate.鈥 But Trump said he won鈥檛 agree to face off with her again.
Trump鈥檚 morning event will mark the second Friday in a row that the Republican has scheduled a news conference, though at his last appearance in New York, the former president didn鈥檛 take any questions. Instead, the Republican for nearly an hour railed against women who have accused him of sexual misconduct over the years, resurrecting the allegations in the public eye days before his debate with Harris.
It鈥檚 unclear whether Trump plans to speak about any subject in particular at Friday鈥檚 news conference, but his campaign has added more to his schedule since early August as he tries to contrast himself with Harris. She has not held a news conference since becoming a presidential candidate and the Democrat has only sat for one in-depth interview.
Her campaign has said she will start doing more interviews with local media outlets concentrated in battleground states.
After appearing at his golf club in upscale Rancho Palos Verdes, Trump will head to a fundraiser in the afternoon in the Bay Area town of Woodside that is being hosted by billionaire software developer Tom Siebel and his wife, Stacey Siebel. Tom Siebel is the second cousin once removed of Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the wife of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat and surrogate for Harris.
Attendees will pay at least $3,300 per person or raise $10,000 for the campaign, according to an invitation. Top-tier donors will get a photo, reception and roundtable, paying $500,000 for a couple to be on the host committee or $150,000 per person to be a co-host.
It鈥檚 Trump's second fundraising stop in California in as many days as he tries to make up fundraising ground against Harris.
Even before she raked in cash after the debate, the vice president reported raising $361 million in August from nearly 3 million donors, her first full month as a candidate after replacing President Joe Biden. Trump brought in $130 million over the same period. Harris鈥 campaign reported that it started September with $109 million more on hand than Trump鈥檚 did.
On Friday night, he heads to Las Vegas, where he鈥檒l have a rally in the city鈥檚 downtown area. Trump was in the city last month for a brief stop to promote his proposal to end federal taxes on workers鈥 tips, something that鈥檚 expected to especially resonate in the tourist city, where much of the service-based economy includes workers who rely on tips. He announced a new proposal Thursday to end taxes on overtime pay.
The swing state is one that Trump narrowly lost in 2016 and 2020 and is among about half a dozen that both campaigns are heavily focused on.
The Republican presidential ticket has visited Clark County, Nevada, four times since June. Trump has held campaign events in Las Vegas three times, while his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, held a rally in suburban Henderson in July.
The Democratic ticket also has visited four times, although two of those campaign events were by President Joe Biden before he dropped out of the race. Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, had a joint rally in Las Vegas last month, and Walz visited the city again Tuesday.
___
Long reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Michael R. Blood in Los Angeles, Chris Megerian in Washington and Tom Verdin in Sacramento contributed to this report.
Michelle L. Price And Colleen Long, The Associated Press