Hollywood executives, performers and thousands of other Californians filed into a Los Angeles theater last month, expecting a star-studded fundraiser for President Biden, backed by actors George Clooney and Julia Roberts, that would inject millions of dollars into Biden\u2019s static campaign and launch him on a path to beat Donald Trump in November.<\/p>\n
Instead, many attendees \u2014 led by Clooney \u2014 now say they watched a dud and a preview screening of what the nation saw two weeks later in Biden\u2019s prime-time debate against Trump.<\/p>\n
\u201cI said to my wife, either he\u2019ll do great at the debate, and we\u2019ll realize he was just tired tonight, or he\u2019ll perform like this and then the whole country will be talking about it,\u201d said Jon Favreau, an Obama White House speechwriter who attended the event.<\/p>\n
Reflecting on the June 15 event at L.A.\u2019s Peacock Theater, some donors said this week that they noticed Biden seemed slow. He appeared frail. As he greeted donors lined up for photos, he trailed off or spoke too quietly in small-talk conversation to be heard.<\/p>\n
The lingering doubts among Biden\u2019s closest supporters that evening help explain why support for him has collapsed so quickly in the days after the June 27 presidential debate: the debate confirmed many voters\u2019 long-held suspicions that the elderly president was not up to the task of campaigning. The reactions among attendees of the event also raise questions about why Biden\u2019s allies did not speak up sooner about their concerns, allowing his campaign to insist for months that Biden was vigorous and sharp behind-the-scenes, when many now say that was not their own experience.<\/p>\n
Measured by dollars, the evening was a success: it brought in more than $30 million for Biden\u2019s campaign, setting a record for a single political fundraiser. The president, who had just flown in from Italy that morning, first met with top donors and allies in a two-hour-plus series of private receptions and photos before taking the stage with former president Barack Obama and talk show host Jimmy Kimmel in the 36-minute main event.<\/p>\n
But even with Kimmel posing softball questions, and Obama frequently interjecting to provide support, Biden struggled to explain key parts of his campaign platform, with attendees saying that the president frequently stumbled over his remarks, trailed off or was simply confusing.<\/p>\n
Some attendees said it was even at worse at the smaller receptions before Biden took the stage. Greeting hundreds of supporters for grip-and-grin photos, the president stumbled over small talk and seemed frail, according to six attendees. For high-level donors who were meeting the 81-year-old Biden for the first time, several said they found his decline shocking.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt felt like he was still the smart, witty guy we\u2019ve all followed for many years, but the volume and speed are turned way down \u2014 to an alarming level,\u201d said one longtime Democratic supporter who, like several others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss her personal experience meeting the president after she and her husband donated $100,000.<\/p>\n
Making small talk with the current and former presidents while preparing for a photo, the donor said that she and Obama shared a brief joke that Biden initially seemed to miss. The current president only attempted a retort \u201cin a barely audible voice\u201d after the photo was over and others had moved on, she said.<\/p>\n
Biden campaign staff and allies have characterized the criticism as unfair and retroactive second-guessing, pointing to the president\u2019s travel and his stamina through the roughly three-hour long event. They note, too, that the Kimmel portion of the evening was open to the media.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral reporters were present for the President\u2019s interview with Jimmy Kimmel at the L.A. fundraiser,\u201d Lauren Hitt, a campaign spokesperson, said in a statement. \u201cNone of them reported out anything like this at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
The donor said she and her husband were asked by friends after the event about Biden\u2019s condition and \u201cstruggled to answer them honestly,\u201d fearful of eroding Biden\u2019s support.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were worried that if we told the truth \u2014 that President Biden was stiff, slow and dare we say it, fragile \u2014 that we risked losing their support for the president,\u201d said the donor. \u201cIt was painful to be deceptive. Now, we realize we were not alone in withholding what we experienced.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another donor said he focused on what he considered the evening\u2019s high points, such as Biden\u2019s rousing slam on the Supreme Court\u2019s recent rulings.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want to believe in the possible,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The fundraiser appears to have been a breaking point for Clooney. In an op-ed in the New York Times on Wednesday, he wrote that he loved and supported Biden \u2014 but that he believed Biden should drop out of the race, in part because of what he had observed at the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fund-raiser was not the Joe \u2018big F-ing deal\u2019 Biden of 2010. He wasn\u2019t even the Joe Biden of 2020,\u201d Clooney wrote. \u201cHe was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.\u201d<\/p>\n
A spokesperson for Clooney declined to elaborate on the actor\u2019s interactions with Biden at the fundraiser.<\/p>\n
Others who attended said they felt Biden had been engaging and energetic, particularly given the circumstances.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019d be tired too after two overseas trips to Europe in a matter of days, plus just getting off an 11-hour flight with a nine-hour time zone change, standing and shaking 200 hands for a couple of hours, and then heading into a giant event to perform,\u201d said Kimberly Marteau Emerson, an attorney who Biden appointed to the United States Holocaust Memorial Council last year. \u201cGiven all that, I think he did a fantastic job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Air Force One touched down at Los Angeles International Airport around 5 a.m. on June 15, with the president and his team fresh from meetings with world leaders and the Pope in Fasano, Italy, and a brief layover outside of Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n
The red-eye flight had required crossing 10 time zones, but the Saturday night fundraiser promised to be lucrative and exciting, representing a glamorous break from Biden\u2019s political battles. VIP donors and political staff could mingle with Clooney \u2014 who has helped organize Democratic fundraisers for years, like a $15 million event for Obama at Clooney\u2019s home in 2012 \u2014 and other Hollywood stars.<\/p>\n
Biden would also share the stage with Kimmel, one of his staunchest \u2014 and wittiest \u2014 supporters in Hollywood. The TV host is a reliable Democratic donor who has also given to Senate candidates such as Missouri attorney Lucas Kunce and Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego, according to Federal Election Commission data.<\/p>\n
While L.A. is a deep-pocketed and reliably liberal enclave \u2014 Biden won Los Angeles County by a nearly three-to-one margin over Trump four years ago \u2014 the president\u2019s campaign had been late to fully tap Hollywood\u2019s checkbooks given entertainment industry strikes last year.<\/p>\n
Now the campaign was working to make up for lost time. The Los Angeles Times reported that access to the most exclusive VIP perks, including the photo line, reception and after-party, cost $500,000. The cheapest tickets to the public portion of the event required a $250 donation to the campaign.<\/p>\n
The campaign was also looking for a boost of energy. As Biden arrived in California, polls showed the presidential race closely tied or with Trump holding a slight edge, and that many Americans were deeply dissatisfied with both major candidates.<\/p>\n
Giving Biden time to recover from his international travel, the president had no scheduled events until around 5:15 p.m., when his motorcade arrived at the Peacock Theater, driving past a smattering of demonstrators protesting about the Israel-Gaza conflict.<\/p>\n
Attendees and campaign staff described several reception areas backstage at the theater, including one area filled with high-profile actors, and another where donors mingled with Democratic elected officials including California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. Guests were eventually invited to queue up for a photo opportunity with Biden and Obama.<\/p>\n
Emerson \u2014 whose husband served as ambassador to Germany under Obama \u2014 said she had a pleasant experience meeting Biden and Obama in the photo line.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mentioned how much we enjoyed hosting Jill at our home a few weeks earlier. He immediately lit up and said, \u2018She told me about it!\u2019 and squeezed my hands,\u201d she wrote in a text message.<\/p>\n
But other Hollywood donors and attendees said that they were disappointed by their glimpses of Biden, particularly when they compared the president to the younger and more energetic Obama standing next to him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just seemed so worn out,\u201d said one donor who hadn\u2019t seen Biden in person in several years.<\/p>\n
Several members of Congress, who interact more often with Biden than the Hollywood crowd, were in attendance and said they found the president\u2019s performance underwhelming, but little different from what they\u2019re accustomed to in Washington.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been with him. I know what to expect,\u201d said one lawmaker, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe the fundraiser and other private experiences. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to think he\u2019s our best chance to beat Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, onstage, Barbra Streisand, Kathryn Hahn, Jason Bateman and other performers entertained the packed crowd.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen democracy is at stake, Jack Black answers the call,\u201d the actor said, endorsing Biden in American-flag overalls and a \u201cDark Brandon\u201d t-shirt.<\/p>\n
BREAKING: Jack Black just delivered the strongest endorsement of President Biden this cycle and in the process he absolutely demolishes Donald Trump. Retweet so all Americans see this. pic.twitter.com\/amMgPMEmq6<\/p>\n
\u2014 Biden\u2019s Wins (@BidensWins) June 16, 2024<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Around 7:45 p.m., Biden took the stage alongside Obama. The two men bantered with Kimmel about how traffic-congested Los Angeles roads can miraculously open once you\u2019re president.<\/p>\n
The conversation then turned more serious, as Kimmel rattled off Biden\u2019s accomplishments as president \u2014 such as lowering prescription drug costs for seniors and decriminalizing cannabis \u2014 and contrasted him with \u201cOrange Julius Caesar,\u201d one of several mocking references to Trump.<\/p>\n
Kimmel also referenced the Supreme Court\u2019s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and end the constitutional right to abortion. The Biden campaign later released a clip of one exchange, showing Biden forcefully arguing the Supreme Court \u201chas never been as out of kilter as it is today,\u201d citing an opinion written by Justice Clarence Thomas that suggested the court should reconsider other decisions that established rights to contraception, as well as same-sex relations and marriage.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot on my watch. Not on my watch,\u201d Biden said to applause.<\/p>\n
But Biden also stumbled over some questions, even as Kimmel and Obama interjected with quips and support. Asked why some Republicans continue to oppose the Affordable Care Act, the president offered a meandering reply.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was able \u2014 and I was able to expand it to \u2014 and save another 8,000 buck \u2014 800 bucks a year for them,\u201d Biden said, according to an official White House transcript. \u201cBut here\u2019s the deal. The fact is that these guys don\u2019t seem to care. They somehow \u2014 and, by the way, it\u2019s not \u2014 it\u2019s saving the country money. It\u2019s not wasting money. All the cost \u2014 it would \u2014 if \u2014 this \u2014 if it \u2014 what \u2014 what\u2019s \u2014 it\u2019s about, I guess, 40 million people would be affected.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMillions of people would be affected,\u201d Obama quickly followed up. \u201cAnd the reason that the Republicans say they\u2019re opposed to it is because we did it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Monica Zierhut, a 55-year-old music supervisor who spent $250 on her seat, said she was impressed by Biden, particularly when accounting for his age and travel.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt he was very articulate when he was talking,\u201d Zierhut said. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t, you know, a meandering old man.\u201d<\/p>\n
But for Favreau, who was sitting close to the stage, the evening was an opportunity lost. Rather than convey a strong and inspiring reelection message, Biden\u2019s performance \u201cwas slow, halting, and hard to follow,\u201d Favreau said.<\/p>\n
Other attendees said they too left the theater with grave concerns but tried to shove them aside. Bedford McIntosh, a 69-year-old retired education fundraiser who spent $1,000 on seats for himself and his wife, said he left the fundraiser worried about the president\u2019s ability to galvanize voters \u2014 particularly given Biden\u2019s contrast with Obama.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou juxtapose those two, and it\u2019s night and day,\u201d said McIntosh. \u201cI didn\u2019t walk out of there thinking, \u2018oh, we got the right guy.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Twelve days later, Biden\u2019s poor performance in the debate against Trump unlocked frustrations across Hollywood, with some longtime Democratic donors venting that they\u2019d been privately reassured that Biden remained sharp even as millions of television viewers discovered the opposite.<\/p>\n
Biden \u201cgave us a bunch of malarkey, and I\u2019m really pissed,\u201d said Ari Emanuel, CEO of entertainment conglomerate WME, speaking at the Aspen Ideas Festival the day after the debate. Emanuel \u2014 whose brother, Rahm, was picked by Biden to be ambassador to Japan \u2014 suggested that donors should stop giving to the president\u2019s campaign. The Biden campaign or White House hasn\u2019t contacted him since his criticism, Emanuel said in an interview Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s go with the bullpen please. Let\u2019s go with relief,\u201d Damon Lindelof, the producer and showrunner behind TV shows \u201cLost,\u201d \u201cThe Leftovers,\u201d and \u201cWatchmen,\u201d wrote in a column for Deadline last week, calling for a \u201cDEMbargo\u201d on donations until Biden drops out.<\/p>\n
Clooney\u2019s column in the New York Times this week went further, calling on Democrats in Congress to speak out and help push for a new nominee.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe dam has broken. We can put our heads in the sand and pray for a miracle in November, or we can speak the truth,\u201d Clooney wrote.<\/p>\n
Other Biden supporters at the fundraiser have stayed with the president. Hahn, who performed at the event, joked about calls for Biden to drop out of the race when she guest-hosted Kimmel\u2019s show on Monday.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere\u2019s the thing: I would vote for a skeleton over Donald Trump,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn fact,\u201d she said, \u201cI may literally be voting for a skeleton.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tyler Pager, Aaron Schaffer, Shawn Boburg and Michael Kranish contributed to this report.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Hollywood executives, performers and thousands of other Californians filed into a Los Angeles theater last month, expecting a star-studded fundraiser for President Biden, backed by actors George Clooney and Julia Roberts, that would inject millions of dollars into Biden\u2019s static campaign and launch him on a path to beat Donald Trump in November. Instead, many […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":6019,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6018","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6018","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6018"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6018\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6019"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}