Convicted yet unbowed, Trump set for fundraising blitz in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO -- Now that he no longer has to sit in court, Trump will be hitting the campaign trail -- including a stop in San Francisco next week.
That June 6 fundraiser in a famously liberal city is being hosted by two venture capitalists. The lowest-price ticket is $50,000. A political expert says we can expect Trump to go on the offensive to raise money for his campaign.
A guilty verdict may have been a big win for Donald Trump's pocket book. Donations started flooding into Trump's "Win Red" website causing it to crash. The Republican candidate for president is also giving his supporters a chance to win an autographed MAGA hat in return for a donation.
"They believe this is red meat and dark liquor thrown to their constituency," said David McCuan, chair of political science at Sonoma State University. "I mean this is right up their alley because they know or they can raise money from this. They can develop some momentum."
McCuan believes that momentum will carry over to the fundraising event in California.
"California is the ATM of the nation when it comes to politics," he said.
While California leans left, McCuan says that's not what matters.
"It's not just a blue state. It's a red state. It's green money state. It's a dollar state," he said. "Look Elon Musk may be here and all over the world and may be intergalactic but he and his friends give a lot of money."
While cash is king in a presidential campaign, Donald Trump needs to win a key segment of voters -- especially in swing states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. It's the undecided voters across the country he needs to win over.
"They're purple people, we call them," McCuan said. "The purple people are a little bit blue, a little bit red. They're not sure what to do. We know that there is a segment of the electorate that won't vote for a felon."
So, while the money may be flowing in for now, it is too early to tell how his conviction and possible sentence will affect fundraising in the long term.
"I think this gives you an idea of the strategy of Donald Trump and his team," McCuan said. "They're going to use today's verdict to open things up and go on the offense. They're not going to sit at home and lick their wounds. They're not just going to talk to the faithful. They're going to open up the map and be everywhere all at once and they're going to have the resources to do that."