President Joe Biden wasted little time making a biting comment about his opponent Donald Trump shortly after he took the stage at a star filled Los Angeles fundraiser.
“I could have done nothing and done better than he was doing,” Biden, who was joined by former President Barack Obama in a conversation moderated by Jimmy Kimmel.
Before Kimmel introduced the two presidents, he showed a video of Trump from 2020, where he predicted that if he was not elected, major holidays like the Fourth of July and Christmas would end. Kimmel had asked the president, “Is it satisfying to see that video to see how wrong Orange Julius Caesar was about your presidency?”
The ABC late night host then went into a long list of Biden’s accomplishments.
Kimmel later noted that Biden said he was “fighting to restore the soul of America and lately it seems like we might need and exorcism. Is that why you visited the Pope?”
The event, which also featured celebrities such as George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Barbra Streisand, was being touted as the largest Democratic fundraiser ever, with at least $28 million being raised, a figure that may go higher, according to a source close to the campaign. The sum is higher than a similar celebrity-filled event the campaign held at Radio City Music Hall in New York in March, when $26 million was raised.
The Biden campaign has been marketing the star-studded event for weeks, with supporters being offered a chance to win a trip to attend and meet some of those on the bill. “It’s amazing how many people will show up to an event when you send 5,000 emails reminding them about it,” Kimmel quipped.
Jill Biden also spoke, introduced by Streisand, who said that the first lady is “the neighbor everyone wishes they have, not the type who suddenly flies an American flag upside down.”
“Trump has told told us again and again why he wants the White House — to give himself absolute power,” the first lady said.
Among the thousands attending the event at the Peacock Theater were industry figures including Damon Lindelof, Marta Kauffman, CAA’s Bryan Lourd and Craig Gering, Kathy Griffin and Jim Gianopoulos, as well as politicos including Governor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, among a group of lawmakers participating in a photo line with Biden and Obama. Also at the theater: Los Angeles City Councilman Kevin de Leon.
As expected, there was a heavy police presence, with loud pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on Olympic Boulevard. Demonstrators have tried to block entrances at previous Biden fundraisers, including a Holmby Hills event in December. Protesters disrupted the Radio City event at points, but it went on as scheduled.
Also appearing at the Los Angeles event were Sista Strings (singing “Lift Every Voice”), The Silhouettes, Sheryl Lee Ralph (singing a rousing rendition of “God Bless America”), Jason Bateman and Kathryn Hahn. Jack Black wore stars and stripes overalls over a Dark Brandon T-shirt.
The post Joe Biden Rips Donald Trump At Start Of Star-Filled L.A. Fundraiser: “I Could Have Done Nothing And Done Better Than He Was Doing” appeared first on Deadline.
