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Today's installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Though Vice President Mike Pence's team reportedly balked, at least at first, at the idea of having plexiglass shields between the candidates, the debate between the Indiana Republican and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) is on track for this evening.
* Speaking of debates, Joe Biden says he's preparing to face off against Donald Trump again next week, the former vice president told reporters yesterday, in reference to the incumbent, "I think if he still has COVID, we shouldn't have a debate."
* In Pennsylvania, the latest Monmouth poll found Biden leading Trump in the Keystone State, 54% to 43%, in a high-turnout model. The latest Emerson poll, however, found the Democrat with a more modest, five-point advantage.
* Michelle Obama was expected to be a key advocate for the Biden/Harris ticket this year, and while the pandemic has kept the former first lady off the trail, she nevertheless released a new video this week on the 2020 race.
* Though Ohio was not expected to be a competitive battleground this year, the Biden campaign is expanding its ad buys in the Buckeye State, and the Trump campaign isn't currently on the air in Ohio at all.
* On Twitter this morning, Trump said he believes he can compete and win in California this year, a state he lost by 30 points in 2016. As part of his pitch, the president vowed to end "ridiculous forrest [sic] fires." (Yes, he misspelled "forest.")
* American Crossroads, a prominent Republican super PAC, is investing another $7 million into North Carolina's U.S. Senate campaign, hoping to rescue Sen. Thom Tillis' (R) candidacy.
* Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) was asked this week about the GOP's odds of keeping its majority in the chamber. "I think it's 50-50," the Republican replied.
* The latest statewide poll in West Virginia shows the president with a predictably huge lead, 56% to 38%, over Biden. That said, Trump's 18-point advantage isn't necessarily great news for the incumbent: the Republican ticket won West Virginia four years ago by nearly 42 points.