THE ANGELS – Some of Hollywood’s brightest stars headlined a fundraiser for President Joe Biden that raked in a record more than $30 million for a Democratic candidate, according to his campaign, hoping to energize potential supporters of a race for the White House that, they said, could be among the most consequential in American history.
George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Barbra Streisand were among those who took the stage at the 7,100-seat Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Saturday night. Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel interviewed Biden and former President Barack Obama, who emphasized the need to defeat former President Donald Trump in a race that is expected to be extremely close.
During more than half an hour of discussion, Kimmel asked if the country suffered from amnesia about the presumptive Republican nominee, to which Biden responded: “All we have to do is remember what it was like” when Trump was in the White House.
Celebrities from the entertainment world have increasingly lined up to help Biden’s campaign, and how important the event was to his re-election bid could be seen in Biden’s decision to fly overnight from the G7 summit in southern Italy to California, to be able to attend.
He also missed a summit in Switzerland on ways to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, sending Vice President Kamala Harris instead.
To further expose the political implications, there were police in riot gear outside the theater. A group of protesters angry over the Biden administration’s handling of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza protested nearby.
Kimmel asked the president what he was most proud of having accomplished, and Biden said he thought the administration’s approach to the economy “is working.”
“Today we have the strongest economy in the world,” Biden said, adding that “we try to give everyday people a fair shot.”
Trump spent Saturday campaigning in Detroit and criticized the Biden administration’s handling of the economy and inflation. The president has been fundraising “with elitist, out-of-touch Hollywood celebrities,” said Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.
The amount raised Saturday surpassed the $26 million mark from Biden’s March event at Radio City Music Hall in New York, where late-night host Stephen Colbert interviewed Biden, Obama and former President Bill Clinton.
Trump surpassed Biden’s event in New York by raising $50.5 million at an April meeting with major donors at the Florida home of billionaire investor John Paulson.
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