President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will make a fundraising swing through the Southland starting Friday, rubbing elbows with Hollywood’s elite to benefit his reelection bid.
Few details about specific events were available as of Thursday evening. The White House announced only that he will be in Los Angeles from Friday to Sunday. The president and first lady were traveling separately to Southern California on Friday.
The President was scheduled to start his West Coast visit Friday morning in Las Vegas, where he planned to talk about his efforts to boost U.S. infrastructure. A planned high-speed rail line between Las Vegas and the Los Angeles area on Tuesday got a Biden administration pledge of $3 billion to help start laying track, Nevada elected officials said.
The $12 billion project led by Brightline West has been talked about for decades, and U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen told reporters that it now has all required right-of-way and environmental approvals, along with labor agreements, for work to start on some 218 miles along the Interstate 15 corridor.
Meanwhile, Jill Biden will visit Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on Friday to tour research laboratories as part of the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research. She plans to tour the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center and Smidt Heart Institute, according to the White House.
She is also expected to appear at fundraisers for her husband on Friday and Saturday.
Friday’s fundraiser is being hosted by Hollywood heavyweights including Steven Spielberg, Shonda Rhimes, Peter Chernin, Jim Gianopulos and Rob Reiner, according to multiple media reports. Rocker Lenny Kravitz is expected to perform. Former L.A. mayoral candidate and billionaire shopping mall magnate Rick Caruso is a co-host. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is also a co-host.
Deadline reported that designer Michael Smith and former U.S. ambassador to Spain James Costos will be hosting the event. Smith, a celebrity interior designer, decorated the White House for President Barack Obama. Smith’s partner, Costos, is a former HBO executive who was Obama’s ambassador to Spain. It is expected to raise millions of dollars and draw a crowd of celebrities. Entertainer/mogul Barbra Streisand is set to attend.
According to Deadline, tickets for the event began at $1,000, ranging to $3,300 and as high as $500,000. Those who contribute $25,000 or more will have access to a photo line.
Social media posts promoted some planned protests near the event. The Palestinian Youth Movement, an organization comprised of Palestinians and Arabs living in the U.S. and Canada, said in a Thursday, Dec. 7 Instagram post that the group is planning to demonstrate at a park near the fundraiser.
The Associated Press reported that Jeffrey Katzenberg, co-founder of DreamWorks, will also host a fundraising gathering for Biden during the presidential visit.
Staff Writer Kristy Hutchings, City News Service and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
