John Matthews
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON — (WMAL/CNN) The Presidential campaign takes on a decidedly D.C. focus Friday, with Republican nominee Donald Trump visiting his new namesake hotel just four blocks from the White House, while the executive mansion’s First Lady heads to Northern Virginia to stump for Trump’s opponent.
Trump’s 10 am campaign event is for the media and is not open to the general public. After meeting and greeting at his new hotel, Trump will travel to McLean for a fund-raising reception at the home of Mercedes and Giuseppe Cecchi.
Giuseppe Checci is president and chief executive officer of the IDI Group Companies, a major developer of condominium and commercial projects in the Washington area.
According to Politico, tickets for the event start at $10,000 a couple, but a photo op with Trump will run a cool $25,000.
As Trump is hobnobbing in McLean, First Lady Michelle Obama will be close by, attending a 3 pm rally for Hillary Clinton at George Mason University’s Johnson Center.
The rally is timed ahead of the commonwealth’s October 17 voter registration deadline.
Once designated “The Closer” on President Barack Obama’s campaigns for the White House, Obama is entering a race more bitterly fought than either of her husband’s own election battles.
Largely averse to partisan bickering, the first lady hopes to avoid being dragged into this year’s fracas, instead making the case for Clinton as a uniquely qualified candidate.
The first lady is Clinton’s most popular campaign surrogate, with polls pegging her favorable rating near 60%. She’s largely avoided the type of policy role that Clinton sought as a presidential spouse, choosing to focus on more broadly accepted topics like supporting military families and combating obesity in children.
She’s carefully positioned herself as a cultural icon, appearing on popular television programs as a vehicle to advance her agenda. This week she co-hosted Ellen DeGeneres’ talk show, partaking in a stunt that saw the host teach the first lady how to shop in a CVS.
Those types of appearances have lent the first lady a degree of authenticity the Clinton campaign hopes will extend to the political realm.
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