Clinton asks for $353K to sit with the Clooneys
Hillary Clinton’s joint fundraising committee called the Hillary Victory Fund is making more money from the Clooney’s than an average American adult makes in five years of working. The Hillary Victory Fund asked George and Amal Clooney to donate $353,000 in order to sit at Clinton’s table at a fundraising event in San Francisco.
By Annie Karni and Kenneth P. Vogel (POLITICO)
It will cost more than four times the average income in San Francisco to have dinner next to Hillary Clinton and the Clooneys there next month.
For two seats at the head table with Clinton, George Clooney and his wife, attorney Amal Clooney, at an April 15 fundraiser, a couple must contribute or raise a whopping $353,400 — a huge ticket price for a hard-dollar fundraiser.
The Bay Area fundraiser, hosted at the home of venture capitalist Shervin Pishevar, is one of two events starring the Clooneys. On April 16, Clinton and the Clooneys will reunite at the Clooney Los Angeles mansion, where tickets cost $33,400 per person to dine at the table with one of Hollywood’s most glamorous couples.
Both events raise money for the Hillary Victory Fund. While the maximum donation to a presidential campaign is $2,700 for the primary elections (plus another $2,700 for the general), the Hillary Victory Fund can accept much larger contributions because it is a so-called joint fundraising committee that is comprised of multiple committees.
In addition to Hillary for America, which is Clinton’s main campaign committee, the Hillary Victory Fund also includes the Democratic National Committee and 32 state party committees.
The maximum donation to the DNC is $33,400 a year, while the state parties each can accept donations of $10,000 a year into their federal accounts.
Clinton’s typical, non-A-list-actor fundraisers for the primary require hosts to raise $10,000 to $50,000. A fundraiser last week at the home of best-selling author John Grisham in Virginia, for instance, required co-hosts to raise $10,000.
At the Clooney residence, co-hosts include Jeffrey and Marilyn Katzenberg, top Democratic fundraisers and major supporters of Barack Obama in 2008. Other co-hosts include Steven Spielberg and his wife, Kate Capshaw, longtime Clinton donors Haim and Cheryl Saban, and other high rollers to be announced at a later date. Clinton’s campaign is also running a contest to allow at least one supporter to attend the star-studded dinner for free.
The event marks Clinton’s third Victory Fund event. A fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall earlier this month featuring Katy Perry and Elton John raised big dollars for the Victory Fund. And last December, Sting hosted an event for the Clintons, where ticket prices ranged from $33,400 for one person to $100,000 for a couple at the “event chair” level. The event raised $8 million in one night.
Republicans quickly seized on the $353,400 price for couples wanting to sit at the head table with Clinton at the event at the Clooneys’ home. Republican National Committee research director Raj Shah tweeted “It’s like she’s charging each couple what she charges colleges for her paid speeches.”
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/03/hillary-clinton-george-clooney-fundraiser-221207