Officials with former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign announced Sunday that the Democratic presidential nominee will travel to southwestern Pennsylvania on Monday.
President Donald Trump, meanwhile, announced Monday morning that he would be visiting Latrobe on Thursday.
Details on the exact time and location of where Mr. Biden will appear were not immediately disclosed by the Biden campaign.
Matt Hill, the Biden campaign’s deputy national press secretary, tweeted Sunday that the former vice president is traveling to southwestern Pennsylvania on Monday “to lay out a core question voters face in this election: are you safe in Donald Trump's America? As Trump fan the flames of division, Biden will offer a different vision for a better future in Joe Biden's America.”
Monday: @JoeBiden will travel to southwestern Pennsylvania to lay out a core question voters face in this election: are you safe in Donald Trump's America? As Trump fan the flames of division, Biden will offer a different vision for a better future in Joe Biden's America.
— Matt Hill (@thematthill) August 30, 2020
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald also announced the former vice president’s visit last night:
Conventions are over, the election is in full swing — & @JoeBiden's first visit is to southwestern PA, where he kicked off his campaign.
— Rich Fitzgerald (@votefitz) August 31, 2020
He knows & cares about us. And when he's President, he'll focus on jobs, infrastructure, health care — all the things that matter to us most. https://t.co/CUm0WO8cP5
Pennsylvania has long been viewed as one of the key battlegrounds in the presidential election and both Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump are devoting much of their attention to the commonwealth. Mr. Trump narrowly won the Keystone State in 2016, beating Hillary Clinton by less than a percentage point, but the win in Pennsylvania helped propel him to the White House.
On Sunday night, the president was quick to respond to Mr. Biden’s scheduled visit. He tweeted that Mr. Biden “is coming out of the basement” to visit Pittsburgh in response to “plunging” poll numbers.
Joe Biden is coming out of the basement earlier than his hoped for ten days because his people told him he has no choice, his poll numbers are PLUNGING! Going to Pittsburgh, where I have helped industry to a record last year, & then back to his basement for an extended period...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 31, 2020
On Thursday, the president is scheduled to visit the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Latrobe. Vice President Mike Pence is slated to be in the state on Tuesday at an event at Wilkes Barre/Scranton International Airport. Mr. Biden grew up in nearby Scranton, where Mr. Trump recently visited.
Lauren Lee: llee@post-gazette.com.
First Published: August 30, 2020, 10:31 p.m.
Updated: August 31, 2020, 2:41 p.m.