President Joe Biden visits downtown Los Angeles on Saturday with a star-studded fundraiser with Barack Obama, which his campaign says has already broken records as the largest fundraiser in Democratic Party history.
Biden landed at LAX just after 5 a.m. and is expected to attend the event at Peacock Theater, formerly known as Nokia Theater and Microsoft Theater, which will be attended by Hollywood supporters such as George Clooney, Jimmy Kimmel and Julia Roberts. His campaign said Saturday that the fundraiser has already raised more than $28 million.
Tickets for the event cost between $250 and $500,000, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Jeffrey Katzenberg, a co-chairman of the Biden 2024 campaign who helped organize the event, said the campaign looks forward to showing its support from Hollywood, the Times reported.
“This Saturday we will see an unprecedented and record-breaking turnout from the media and entertainment world,” Katzenberg said. “We all understand that this is the most important election of our lifetimes.”
Meanwhile, California’s Republican Party said Biden’s inclusion of the entertainment elite would likely not bode well with some voters.
“Nothing says to struggling Americans, ‘I understand what you’re going through and am willing to help,’ like spending a night chatting with the ultra-recognizable George Clooney, Julia Roberts and other Hollywood celebrities,” Jessica Millan Patterson, president of the party, said a statement.
Last week, Republican nominee and condemned former President Donald Trump made his own trip to Southern California. He appeared at a fundraiser in Newport Beach, where tickets ranged from $3,300 to $100,000. Participants also had the chance to have their picture taken with Trump for a starting prize of $35,000.
The last time Biden visited the Los Angeles area was in February, when he attended a fundraiser in the gated community of Beverly Park, at the home of Israeli-American media mogul Haim Saban. Tickets for the event sold for between $3,300 and $250,000.
