President Biden was kicking it Thursday with former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton at Radio City Music Hall, where the trio sat down with comedian Steven Colbert as part of a grandiose fundraiser for the incumbent’s 2024 re-election bid.
Colbert, host of CBS’s “The Late Show,” was tasked with moderating the discussion between the three Democratic commander-chiefs at the lavish New York City event, dubbed by the 81-year-old president as a “grassroots fundraiser.”
First son Hunter Biden and other members of the Biden clan were among the more than 5,000 people expected to attend the event, which the campaign said bolstered the president’s war chest by more than $25 million.
Tickets for the affair ranged from $250 to $500,000, according to Reuters, and the most generous donors received a photo-op with the three presidents — snapped by Annie Leibovitz — and invitations to separate receptions with Biden, Obama and Clinton.
Comedian and actress Mindy Kaling hosted a portion of the event, which also featured musical performances by Queen Latifah, Lizzo, Ben Platt, Cynthia Erivo and Lea Michele.
The fundraiser was organized by Biden campaign co-chairman and Hollywood mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.
“The numbers don’t lie: today’s event is a massive show of force and a true reflection of the momentum to reelect the Biden-Harris ticket,” Katzenberg said in a statement.
Former President Donald Trump, who was also in the Empire State Thursday, attending the Long Island wake of slain NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller, used the fundraiser as fodder to shore up his own campaign coffers.
“Hundreds of deranged Hollywood liberals will be in attendance, and they will open their wallets to fund the DESTRUCTION OF OUR COUNTRY!” one of several Trump campaign fundraising emails referencing the Biden-Obama-Clinton event read.
“Together we can DROWN OUT their dirty dollars, but it all depends on how much support we get right here, right now,” the solicitation added. “Remember, my campaign isn’t powered by the Hollywood ‘elite’ writing 6-figure checks – IT’S POWERED BY YOU!”
Biden has a significant financial advantage over Trump, 77, despite recent polls showing that the former president is leading the 2024 race.
The Biden campaign reported having $155 million in cash on hand as of this month and the president has raised $53 million in a nationwide fundraising blitz over the past month.
Trump’s $36.6 million campaign stockpile pales in comparison.
