In what is likely to be one of President Biden's last big Hollywood fundraisers before the November election, the Democrat will come to town Saturday for a star-studded, multimillion-dollar event in downtown Los Angeles.
The state, the city and the entertainment industry have long been the financial backbone of Democratic candidates across the country. But Saturday's meeting, which will include appearances by former President Obama and actors George Clooney and Julia Roberts, comes at a tense time for the incumbent.
The war between Israel and Hamas is a priority in a city that is home to the country's second-largest Jewish community, although it is not monolithic in terms of Israel's current response to Hamas. The conflict was sparked by the terrorist group's brutal attack on Israel on October 7, which left tens of thousands of Palestinians dead.
And although statistics on unemployment, inflation and job creation show that the country's economy is steadily improving, voters still feel pain at the supermarket and at the gas pump.
Therefore, a shiny event in which the most expensive package costs $500,000 creates a double-edged sword for Biden, said Jessica Levinson, an election law professor at Loyola Law School.
“The concern is that he seems out of touch with where Americans are with regard to how much one might pay to attend a high-value dinner when many people are struggling to put food on the table, and during an international crisis in which he could “On the other hand, this is what politicians do. We have created a system in which you have to raise large amounts of dollars to be competitive, and you would be a lunatic to do so. unilaterally disarmed. Although his name is recognized and he has been fully presented to the American public, it would be political suicide to give up raising large amounts of funds.”
Despite California's sapphire trend, the state's donors are the primary source of campaign cash for both parties.
The presumptive nominees of both major parties have raised more in California than any other state in the nation this election cycle, with Biden raising $24 million through April 30 and former President Trump $11.7 million, according to the Federal Electoral Commission. These figures do not include Trump's fundraising in the state last weekend, nor do they include what Biden is expected to raise on Saturday at the Peacock Theatre.
In 2020, donors associated with television, film or music nationwide contributed $40.1 million to efforts supporting Biden and $24.3 million to groups working to re-elect Trump, according to an analysis of campaign fundraising by Open Secrets, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that tracks election finances. .
The entertainment industry's Democratic leanings are well known. However, this election is different from the halcyon days when industry leaders honored Bill Clinton in 1992 or Barack Obama in 2008.
“Both Clinton and Obama were looking for a generational change,” said Donna Bojarsky, a longtime Democratic political consultant, Hollywood fundraiser and co-founder of a nonprofit dedicated to fostering civic engagement in Los Angeles. “This is not a happy election. “This is an election of great importance, of great struggle and of great polarization.”
Biden does not have the same deep relationships with industry leaders as any of the previous Democratic presidents.
National and swing state polls show an incredibly close race between Biden and Trump, even after the Republican was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records, some $130,000 in payments made to adult film actor Stormy Daniels for an alleged sexual relationship, and the Democrat's son is convicted of three serious weapons crimes.
“These are not the most optimistic of times,” Bojarsky said. “Social norms, economic norms, civic norms, everything is upside down.”
But he added that donors have come around, particularly media mogul and Democratic lobbyist Jeffrey Katzenberg, who orchestrated Saturday's fundraiser.
“This Saturday we will see record and unprecedented participation from the world of media and entertainment,” Katzenberg said. “The enthusiasm and commitment for Biden-Harris could not be stronger. “We all understand that this is the most important election of our lives.”
Biden was prevented from holding high-dollar fundraising events in Hollywood for much of 2023 due to industry strikes. Once the contracts were worked out, the president led major fundraising events here, including one in December where ticket sales approached $1 million.
Hosted by directors Steven Spielberg and Rob Reiner, producer Shonda Rhimes and other bold names, the event took place at the Holmby Hills home of James Costos, the US ambassador to Spain under Obama, and the designer Michael Smith, the White House interior decorator during the Obama administration and featured a performance by musician Lenny Kravitz.
In February, media mogul Haim Saban hosted Biden for a fundraiser at his Beverly Park estate. Tickets cost up to $250,000 and actress Jane Fonda was among those in attendance.
A few months later, Saban, a Democratic megadonor, criticized the Biden administration for suspending a weapons shipment to Israel because they could be used in an offensive against a densely populated city in southern Gaza.
This division, which is dividing key voting blocs in the Democratic coalition, could become evident on Saturday. Protesters have disrupted internal events for the president and Vice President Kamala Harris and gathered outside fundraising events and the White House. At least one demonstration is planned outside of Saturday's fundraiser.
Protests over the conflict have rocked college campuses across the country, including a pro-Palestinian demonstration at UCLA this week that resulted in about two dozen arrests after an initially peaceful gathering turned tumultuous.
This dynamic is likely to show up at Biden's fundraising due to the expected absence of Clooney's wife, Amal Clooney, an international human rights lawyer. She worked on the International Criminal Court case that led court prosecutors to seek arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and others.
George Clooney called a top Biden adviser to object to the president's characterization of the request for arrest warrants for Israeli leaders as “outrageous,” according to the Washington Post.
Biden, who is attending the G-7 summit in Italy, is expected to arrive in Los Angeles on Saturday.
Later that day, thousands of the president's supporters will converge on the Peacock Theater. The cheapest tickets are $250 for the seat furthest from the stage. The most expensive option, $500,000, includes four seats in the first three rows in front of the stage, a reception and photos with Biden and Obama, and an after-party, according to an invitation.
Republicans seized on the meeting as evidence that Democrats do not understand the travails of many Americans.
“President Trump will campaign and meet with everyday Americans in Detroit, Michigan, an area decimated by Joe Biden's failed policies,” said Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung. “Meanwhile…Biden will be at a glitzy fundraiser in Hollywood with his elitist, out-of-touch celebrity benefactors who own him.”
The former president visited California earlier this month in his first fundraising campaign after his convictions, three affairs that cost up to $500,000 per couple. Actor Jon Voight was among those attending one held at a bayfront mansion on the closed Harbor Island in Newport Beach.
Said Jessica Millan Patterson, chairwoman of the California Republican Party: “Nothing says to struggling Americans, 'I understand what you're going through and I'm ready to help,' like spending an evening chatting with the ultra-relatable George Clooney, Julia Roberts and other Hollywood celebrities. What you'll probably see at President Biden's glitzy party in Los Angeles: anti-Israel protests dividing his party, excuses for why issues like inflation and illegal immigration aren't as bad as Californians think they are. are, and a group of out-of-touch Hollywood elites who fear their standard-bearer isn't up to the job.”
Democrats argue that such characterizations reflect Republicans' jealousy of their party's dominance among those donors, and they point out that these contributors are working against their own economic interests because of their concerns for the nation's future.
“These people are not fighting for tax breaks for themselves. They are fighting for you to have clean water, for you to have clean air, for you to have access to abortion and civil rights,” said Mathew Littman, a former Biden speechwriter who helped create a private group of actors, directors and producers who They work largely behind the scenes to help the Democratic Party.
Among those who have participated in informational Zooms, fundraisers, get-out-the-vote efforts and other actions aimed at helping Democrats since the group formed in 2017 are actresses Alyssa Milano, Helen Hunt and Barbara Hershey; Lawrence Bender, whose resume includes producing multiple Quentin Tarantino films; David Mandel, whose credits include executive producing “Veep,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and “Seinfeld”; and Kevin Kwan, author of “Crazy Rich Asians.”
Kwan was an Asian American surrogate during Biden's 2020 campaign.
“I wrote a lot of angry speeches,” he told the New Yorker in an article published in 2021.
“Going on Zoom and seeing two hundred AAPI volunteers, I thought, 'Oh my God,'” she said, according to the magazine. “Maybe I'm stereotyping, but it takes a lot to bring out the Asian volunteer.”
Littman acknowledged that qualms about how motivated voters are to go to the polls in November are a key concern for some of the group's members.
“There should be anxiety,” Littman said. “It's 50-50.”
But he added that Hollywood could have an impact, as with social media, which now has greater influence than most traditional media. He added that even those who are disenchanted with Biden or the Democratic Party recognize what is at stake.
“Maybe you love Joe Biden. Maybe not,” he said. “But you might like being able to have an abortion. Maybe you would love to be able to protest without being deported. He may not want inflation to rise 10% if Trump is elected. If you don't want to talk about Joe Biden, don't talk about Joe Biden. Talk about the issues at stake.”
