Battleground Watch

Although Pennsylvania has not always been the priority many of us hoped it would be, the Romney campaign has changed its tune of late and heads back to the state next week:

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will campaign in Pittsburgh next week. Mr. Romney plans to attend a fundraising event, closed to the general public, Tuesday at the Duquesne Club. A spokeswoman for the campaign said she could not comment on whether the former Massachusetts governor also would appear at a public event while he is in the region. His visit follows President Barack Obama’s appearance last week at Carnegie Mellon University for a sun-scorched rally at the end of a bus tour through Ohio and Western Pennsylvania.

A local Republican official said the fundraiser at the Downtown club would be a three-tiered affair, with suggested contributions ranging from $2,500 to $50,000. The event will come a week after the GOP campaign announced one more in a series of robust monthly fundraising totals. Combined with the Republican National Committee, the Romney forces out-raised the combined haul of the Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee for the second month in a row. The Romney total for June was $106 million compared with $71 million for Mr. Obama and his allies, although the Democratic campaign continues to hold an overall lead in contributions. According to figures compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics, the two candidates have raised similar amounts in Pennsylvania so far, with both reporting totals from state donors of just more than $3 million.