Trump to visit Rancho Palos Verdes on Tuesday for RNC meeting at his golf club – Daily Breeze
President Donald Trump, in only his second trip to California since returning to office in January 2025, is expected to speak at a Republican National Committee dinner at the Trump National Golf Club in Rancho Palos Verdes on Tuesday, Aug. 4.
A spokesperson for the White House confirmed the trip and said Trump will “tout his wins for the people of the Golden State despite failed Democrat leadership: the largest middle-class tax cut ever, the most secure border in American history, and a plummeting crime rate.”
“The President will draw a sharp contrast between his commonsense agenda and the radical policies of Democrats like (Gov.) Gavin Newsom, who keep raising taxes, inviting rampant fraud in taxpayer-funded programs, and protecting illegal immigrant drug dealers, rapists, and murderers,” White House spokesperson Olivia Wales added.
Newsom, who is weighing a possible run for the presidency, is a vocal critic of Trump, regularly attacking the president and the administration on social media.
The governor’s office issued a statement Monday evening about the president’s upcoming trip.
“Donald Trump is coming to Los Angeles County to raise money while wildfire survivors are still waiting for the federal recovery funding he promised 18 months ago. Californians deserve a president focused on helping families rebuild — not raising money for himself at his golf course,” said Tara Gallegos, a spokesperson for the governor’s office.
Earlier Monday, the governor attacked the administration on the issue of wages.
Then Former President Donald Trump holds a press conference at Trump National Golf Club in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
“California is raising the minimum wage to $17.40 an hour next year — more than DOUBLE the federal minimum wage,” Newsom posted on X. “Donald Trump and the GOP are still defending a $7.25 minimum wage while workers scrape by. Pitiful.”
It is unclear if or how local traffic in and around the L.A. area might be impacted by the president’s visit.
Early Monday afternoon, the Lomita Sheriff’s Station reported that no road closures had yet been announced for Tuesday.
Trump is scheduled to participate in an RNC roundtable starting at 6:30 p.m. at his golf club, which will be followed by a 7 p.m. reception, before leaving for Las Vegas, according to a schedule released by the White House.
He is scheduled to speak Wednesday afternoon at Red Rock Casino, Resort and Spa, with his remarks mainly focusing on the economy and tax relief.
Trump’s last official visit to California was in January 2025, when he toured areas devastated by the Palisades fire and held a roundtable discussion with local elected officials, including L.A. Mayor Karen Bass.
He last visited the Trump National Golf Club in 2024, where he addressed the ongoing land-movement scenario on the Palos Verdes Peninsula.
Back then, at the height of the 2024 presidential campaign, then-former President Trump lashed out at Democratic nominee Kamala Harris. He called California “a mess” and said that the state and federal government are “missing in action” when it comes to helping residents impacted by the reactivation of an ancient landslide complex on the peninsula.
Trump also took multiple jabs at Newsom during that trip. If elected president, he said, he would consider withholding federal firefighting aid to California if the governor declined to enact his policy priorities on such issues as taxes.
Then former President Donald Trump during a news conference at Trump National Golf Club in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Trump’s ties to Rancho Palos Verdes dates back more than two decades.
He purchased the Ocean Trails Golf Course, a 261-acre property, in 2002 and subsequently renamed it for himself.
Trump had long eyed the course’s spectacular coastal location and ocean views as a natural site for professional tournaments, challenging other California courses such as Pebble Beach for the honors. He has often pointedly referred to it as “the most beautiful golf course in California.”
When the deal was struck, the course had yet to be restored to its full 18 holes after the June 1999 landslide that caved in the 18th fairway shortly before its planned grand opening. It had been operating as a 15-hole course since finally opening in November 2000. The course itself officially reopened in its restored 18-hole configuration on Jan. 20, 2006.
Trump paid $27 million in November 2002 for the course and adjacent land to be used for luxury housing.
Ocean Trails Drive was also renamed as Trump National Drive, after years-long battle with city leaders, in 2012.
After the course reopened, Trump’s battles with Rancho Palos Verdes only escalated. The city took issue when he erected a giant 70-foot flagpole on the property in 2008. It finally was officially approved in 2016.
Trump worked with golf architect Tom Fazio to revamp the Pete Dye-designed course, making it longer and widening its fairways. He also added man-made waterfalls, including a large 30-footer; waterfalls are a prominent feature of many of his other golf courses.
Secret Service snipers protect then former President Donald Trump before a press conference at Trump National Golf Club in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Since water seepage had been cited as a possible cause of the landslide, city engineers expressed some concerns at first, but the structures were built in a way that prevented excess underground water runoff.
Trump’s visit to Rancho Palos Verdes on Tuesday won’t be the first time this year that the neighborhood surrounding the Trump National Golf Club will be abuzz with news.
In March, L.A. County sheriff’s deputies arrested a man they found running through traffic on Palos Verdes Drive South near the golf course, armed with a semi-automatic AR pistol and a loaded revolver.
The man was accused of carrying a loaded rifle, painted to look like a toy gun inspired by the Joker character from “Batman,” and wearing a heavy-duty ballistic vest.
The man was charged with four felony counts, including possession of an assault weapon, possession of a short-barreled rifle or shotgun, carrying a loaded firearm in public under specific circumstances, and manufacturing a large-capacity magazine, court records show. He pleaded not guilty at the time.
SCNG writer Tyler Shaun Evains and City News Service contributed to this report.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include a comment from the governor’s office about Trump’s visit and the time that the president is expected to be at the RNC event.
