Trump is panicking and has had to put together a last-minute rally in North Carolina for which local officials forced him to pay in advance.

The City of Asheville confirmed receipt of a $82,247.60 payment from the Trump campaign, ahead of the former presidentâsÂ Wednesday campaign event in Asheville.

The deposit will cover a two-day rental of the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, a city-owned building thatâs part of the Harrahâs Cherokee Center complex in downtown Asheville. The auditorium is the smaller of the complexâs two venues, with a maximum seating capacity of 2,431, according to the venue website.

Of those funds, $22,500 is the rental amount for the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium event space, according to city spokesperson Kim Miller.

Local officials required Trump to pay in advance for additional staffing, venue security, crowd management expenses, and other costs.

Trump’s campaign put together the rally at the last second because they are sinking fast and trailing in the polls to Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump’s original plan was to do no campaigning and hold no events until after the Democratic convention next week.

Donald Trump has run up massive balances, in some cases totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses for rallies around the country that local taxpayers. When Trump stiffs a local government, it’s the people in the local community who have to have their services cut or pay higher taxes to make up for the deadbeat ex-president rolling into their town.

Hopefully, more cities and towns will follow Asheville’s lead and ask Trump to pay in advance for his rallies.

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelorâs Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards andÂ Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association