Joining the dignitaries attending President Biden's star-studded fundraiser at the Peacock Theater on Saturday night was the man Biden had urged to resign from the Los Angeles City Council: Kevin de León.
De León, who weathered a scandal that rocked City Hall, was seen in the theater lobby as other elected officials met with Biden and former President Obama.
Outside the theater, De León took the opportunity to speak with journalists about what he characterized as the danger of Donald Trump becoming president again.
He looked at the pro-Palestinian protesters who had flanked the theater and said: “What is at stake here right now, in the disputed states… is the well-being of the immigrants, the undocumented immigrants, the poor, the most vulnerable, our elders”. the citizens. That is what is at stake here too, not just global issues.”
In a video posted online by a Pasadena Star-News reporter, De León added: “I'm looking forward to Presidents Biden and Barack Obama really instilling a sense of deep enthusiasm among Democrats. Listen, this is a blue city; This is a blue state. We're not going anywhere. … I hope California can have that huge positive impact.”
De León is making a political comeback after the Los Angeles Times revealed in 2022 that he had participated with other council members in a secretly recorded conversation riddled with racist comments. The audio leak led the then president of the Council, Nury Martínez, to resign. Many called for De León to resign as well, including Biden.
“The president is glad to see that one of the participants in that conversation has resigned, but everyone should,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said at the time.
Instead, De León clung to his seat, despite persistent protests in City Hall chambers, the loss of his committee assignments and his physical altercation with a critic that was captured on video. He mounted a re-election campaign and placed second in the March primary election. Last month, Council President Paul Krekorian announced that he would place De León on four council committees.
And on Saturday night, the controversial councilman was spotted at the downtown event, the highest-grossing Democratic fundraiser on record in Los Angeles. But other elected dignitaries from Southern California, including Mayor Karen Bass and Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Long Beach), mingled with Biden and Obama in the VIP section.
Los Angeles City Councilman Curren Price was also seen arriving at the theater, although he was prevented from entering near the JW Marriott hotel as protesters sat outside the doors. Some of the protesters shouted at him, referring to the pending criminal charges against him.
Price was charged last year with 10 counts of embezzlement, perjury and conflict of interest for voting on development projects in which he allegedly had a financial interest. He is also the subject of a review by the City of Los Angeles Ethics Commission over similar allegations.
Staff writers Liam Dillon and Seema Mehta contributed to this report.
