President Donald Trump is expected to visit Scranton next week on the same day challenger Joe Biden — a native of the Electric City — is scheduled to accept the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination during a virtual convention.
But what outsiders call “Scranton” could actually be somewhere in Luzerne County, a source told the Times Leader.
“President Trump is expected to hit the road next week as counterprogramming to the DNC, visiting four battleground states: MN, WI, AZ & PA. This will likely be a mix of campaign & official WH events, including a visit to Scranton on Thurs,” NBC News political reporter Monica Alba Tweeted on Wednesday.
USA Today also reported the planned visit, saying it is set for next Thursday, the same day Biden is scheduled to deliver his acceptance speech.
Further details were not immediately available, but a local source with knowledge of the situation said they were informed the Secret Service will be in the area, possibly as early as today, starting to scout locations ranging from Scranton to as far south as Edwardsville.
The Republican president’s Democratic opposition, meanwhile, already was taking the report seriously — and taking aim at Trump over it.
“Instead of coming to Pennsylvania and campaigning next Thursday evening, Donald Trump should do what he does best — sit on his couch and watch TV,” said Pennsylvania Democratic Party Chair Nancy Patton Mills.
Reports of Trump’s planned northeastern Pennsylvania stop came one day after Biden named California Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate, ratcheting up news coverage of the former vice president’s campaign.
Trump on Wednesday responded to Biden’s announcement by tweeting: “@KamalaHarris started strong in the Democrat Primaries, and finished weak, ultimately fleeing the race with almost zero support. That’s the kind of opponent everyone dreams of!”
Biden, who was born in Scranton but moved to Delaware with his family when he was 10, made a campaign stop in Dunmore on July 9, touring McGregor Industries and then addressed about 50 people — mostly campaign workers and media — on his jobs and economic recovery plan.
Trump participated in a FOX News Town Hall at the Scranton Cultural Center in March.