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Democrats Stump Where Stump Speech Started: Campaign Update

The haul should help pad Trump’s already substantial advantage over his Democratic opponents.

Democrats Stump Where Stump Speech Started: Campaign Update
U.S. President Donald Trump claps after presenting the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Mariano Rivera, not pictured, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S. (Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Blomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Democratic presidential candidates continued a tradition that began in the 19th century on Monday night by appearing at South Carolina’s Galivants Ferry Stump, an event believed to be the origin of the term “stump speech.”

Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar and Bill de Blasio each spoke for about 20 minutes at a tree-stump podium. Bernie Sanders and Tulsi Gabbard were both supposed to attend, but pulled out of the event. Sanders did not attend so he could rest his voice after experiencing hoarseness.

In their speeches, the candidates fired off zingers at President Donald Trump, generating laughs and cheers from the large crowd.

“I’ve faced worse kinds of incoming than a tweet full of typos,” Buttigieg said as he emphasized his military experience and reassured voters he could face off against Trump.

The event, outside Pee Dee Farms General Store, is usually held in the spring of even-numbered years, but given the historically large Democratic field and South Carolina’s importance as an early primary state, it was pushed up to allow voters to hear from candidates before the primary in February.

Trump Plans to Raise $15 Million in California (3:13 p.m.)

President Donald Trump could bank more than $15 million for his re-election effort during a two-day fundraising swing through California later this week.

A lunch in the Bay Area on Tuesday is expected to generate at least $3 million, while a pair of events in the Los Angeles area could bring in $8 million and a fundraiser in San Diego could yield $4 million, according to a Republican Party official who requested anonymity to discuss the fundraising totals.

The events, first reported by the Associated Press, will benefit a joint fundraising committee shared between the president’s re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee.

The haul should help pad Trump’s already substantial advantage over his Democratic opponents. The president’s campaign committee had more than $56 million in cash on hand as of his last fundraising report filed at the end of June.

Aides say that advantage is why the president can afford to compete in states like New Mexico – where he’s holding a rally on Monday – that Democrats have largely won in recent election years. -- Justin Sink

Sanders Wants to Flip Trump Voters in Iowa (2:40 p.m.)

Bernie Sanders will embark on a swing through half a dozen Iowa counties that flipped to President Donald Trump after backing Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, aiming to show that he can bring those voters back into the Democratic fold.

The Sanders campaign says the candidate will demonstrate he can defeat the incumbent in 2020 in those counties, which it considers key to taking the state and winning the general election.

The “Bernie Beats Trump” tour next week will highlight his progressive plans on health care, eliminating medical debt, boosting public education and other issues. Iowa has 31 counties that flipped from Obama to Trump, more than any other state the nation, the campaign says.

Sanders leads Trump by an average of 7 percentage points in national polls taken between July 7 and Sept. 5, according to RealClearPolitics. Three other leading Democratic presidential contenders also consistently best him. Former Vice President Joe Biden does even better than Sanders, with an edge of 11.5 points in the RCP average. Senator Elizabeth Warren beats Trump by 5.2 points on average and Senator Kamala Harris has a 4.2 point average lead.

Sanders has the support of one in three of the 2020 Democratic donors in the counties across the U.S. that went for Obama in 2012 and for Trump in 2016, Sanders’ campaign said. -- Laura Litvan

Progressive Coalition Back Warren Over Sanders (12:56 p.m.)

The Working Families Party, a key progressive grassroots coalition that backed Bernie Sanders in 2016, endorsed Elizabeth Warren on Monday.

Endorsements from groups like WFP are critical for candidates seeking support from working-class voters and labor unions. Warren was chosen in the first round of voting after a three-month process featuring house parties, debates, discussions and online forums. Sanders came in second.

Democrats Stump Where Stump Speech Started: Campaign Update

“Senator Warren strikes fear into the hearts of the robber barons who rigged the system, and offers hope to millions of working people who have been shut out of our democracy and economy,” said Maurice Mitchell, national director of the WFP. “Our job now is to help Senator Warren build the mass movement that will make her transformational plans a reality.”

Influential unions like the Service Employees International Union and American Federation of Teachers have yet to endorse, but Sanders has received the backing the United Electrical workers in August, and Joe Biden was endorsed by the International Association of Fire Fighters shortly after he announced his candidacy. -- Emma Kinery

Yang Says He’s Raised $1 Million in Weekend (11:22 a.m.)

Candidate Andrew Yang says he raised $1 million over the weekend following the third Democratic presidential debate, attributing it to the announcement in his opening statement that he would giveaway $1,000 a month for a year to 10 families.

Democrats Stump Where Stump Speech Started: Campaign Update

Yang, founder of Venture for America, is running on his signature proposal for a universal basic income plan that would offer every American over 18 $1,000 a month. At the Houston debate Thursday, the entrepreneur used his opening statement to announce a “Freedom Dividend,” giving $1,000 a month to 10 families who enter a raffle via his campaign website, which also solicits donations.

The eyebrow-raising use of a debate opening statement to offer cash to voters prompted questions about whether it would run afoul of campaign laws, but Yang said on CNN Sunday that his lawyers have concluded it’s “perfectly legal.”

Yang has been drawing about 3% support in most recent polls. -- Emma Kinery

COMING UP

Joe Biden, Amy Klobuchar, Pete Buttigieg and Bill De Blasio will gather around the Galivants Ferry Stump in South Carolina to address voters as part of a local Democratic Party tradition dating back to the 19th century.

Elizabeth Warren gives a major anti-corruption speech Monday evening in New York City’s Washington Square Park.

The United Food and Commercial Workers union will host forums with Democratic presidential candidates on Sept. 29 and Oct. 13. Michael Bennet, Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Pete Buttigieg, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have confirmed they will attend.

--With assistance from Emma Kinery and Justin Sink.

To contact the reporter on this story: Tyler Pager in Galivants Ferry, South Carolina at tpager1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Max Berley, John Harney

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