Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently made a cash stop at the Hollywood ATM via a $2,700 per ticket fundraiser, which was held at the home of Lionsgate co-Chairman Rob Friedman.
Interestingly, Vice President Joe Biden appeared that very same weekend at a celebrity-draped gala on global inequality, which took place at New York City’s Central Park.
At the Global Citizen Festival, Biden and first lady Michelle Obama joined a long list of notables, which included musicians Beyonce, Pearl Jam, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, and Bono; actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Hugh Jackman, Kerry Washington, Olivia Wilde, and Salma Hayek; and technology magnates Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg.
Biden’s presence at the high-profile gathering seemed to add fuel to the burgeoning expectation that he is going to challenge Clinton in the battle to become the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the vice president's aides have been busily contacting major Democratic donors making it more and more likely that Biden will throw his hat in the ring.
The vice president is reportedly considering an announcement that would allow him to participate in the Democratic debate that is scheduled for Oct. 13.
Some big-name supporters of a Biden presidential effort have been surfacing in Hollywood.
Actor George Clooney, who held a record breaking fundraiser that netted $15 million for the reelection campaign of President Obama back in 2012, is seriously considering throwing his fame behind Biden rather than Hillary Clinton, according to The Hollywood Reporter's sources.
Clooney had previously said that he would support Clinton; however, that was before it appeared that a Biden candidacy was a real possibility.
Clooney has made less than favorable statements about the former secretary of state, having in 2006 reportedly called Clinton “the most polarizing figure in American politics.” The actor-activist ultimately gave his endorsement to Obama in 2008.
One major Hollywood political fundraising figure, Jay Sures, has fully endorsed a Biden candidacy. The United Talent Agency managing director expects other leading Democrats in the entertainment community to follow suit.
Sures told Variety if the vice president runs he is willing to coordinate efforts to reach out to the entertainment industry on Biden’s behalf.
“Hillary and Bill Clinton have spent decades courting Hollywood,” Sures said. “[Biden] never had to come to Hollywood and beg for money. His relationships here are not at the level of the former secretary of state and former president. My goal is to develop those relationships for him.”
The Hollywood executive was quite impressed with Biden’s appearance on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” during which the vice president spoke publicly about the death of his son Beau.
“The appearance was a defining moment for Biden,” Sures told The Hollywood Reporter. “It exposed a side of him people here [Hollywood] have not seen before.”
Sures added, “I would get front-and-center behind him if he decides to run.”
Other major Hollywood figures are ready to jump on the Biden bandwagon as well.
“People in Hollywood have literally been begging Biden to enter the race,” an anonymous entertainment industry fundraiser told The Hollywood Reporter. “Everyone seems to want him to run now. A lot of Obama people who went to Hillary initially are prepared to jump ship and go to Biden.”
Yolanda “Cookie” Parker is a software CEO who served on President Obama’s National Finance Committee for both the 2008 and 2012 campaigns, and was a National Co-Chair for Technology for Obama.
Parker’s name appeared alongside the names of almost 50 Democratic fundraisers in a letter that urged Biden to run for president.
As was the case with Sures, Parker told Variety that her opinion of the presidential campaign was affected by watching Biden’s performance on Colbert’s show.
She additionally brought up the 2012 vice presidential debate between Biden and GOP vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan in which Biden told Ryan that what he had said was “malarkey.”
“This election is going to be about retail politics, and we need someone who can look Republicans in the eye and say, ‘malarkey,’” Parker said.
Sures sees Biden’s credentials as being able to best the resumes of others in the race to the White House.
“I believe Biden is the most qualified person to be president,” Sures told The Hollywood Reporter. “And there are lots of people in Hollywood who believe the same thing.”
Seeming to echo the recurring probing question of radio and television personality Sean Hannity, Sures pointed out Clinton's lackluster record to Variety.
“Name her three big accomplishments. Name me her two big accomplishments. Name one massive accomplishment,” Sures asked.
James Hirsen, J.D., M.A., in media psychology, is a New York Times best-selling author, media analyst, and law professor. Visit Newsmax TV Hollywood. Read more reports from James Hirsen — Click Here Now.
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