President Joe Biden was joined on Thursday by two of his Democratic predecessors star collection at Radio City Music Hall, which his campaign said raised greater than $26 million.
Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton attended the event, which took place in New York and drew greater than 5,000 supporters, including several protesters who interrupted this system while the three presidents were speaking.
The host of the show, which ended around 10 p.m., was actress and comedian Mindy Kaling. and the evening’s host Stephen Colbert moderated the conversation with Biden, Clinton and Obama. Special guests include stars resembling Queen Latifah, LizzoBen Platt, Cynthia Erivo and Lea Michele.
During the nearly hour-long moderated conversation, Colbert joked that it was a historic moment because “three presidents came to New York and none of them showed up in court,” sharply criticizing former President Donald Trump’s impeachment and civil lawsuits.
Clinton also sharply criticized Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, arguing that he “had a few good years because he stole them from Barack Obama.”
However, the discussion was interrupted at the least five times by protesters. Colbert acknowledged considered one of the protesters and asked Biden concerning the United States’ role in ensuring a peaceful and prosperous future for each Israelis and Palestinians.
Biden said more must be done to offer aid in Gaza, but added that Israel’s very existence is at stake.
“There has to be a push towards a two-state solution,” Biden said. “It doesn’t have to happen today. There must be progress. I think we can do it.”
His response was met with a standing ovation and chants of “four more years.”
Obama sternly addressed the protester when he was interrupted, saying, “You can’t just talk and not listen.”
“It’s part of democracy,” Obama added. “Part of democracy is not just talking. It’s listening. That’s what the other side is doing, and it’s important that we understand that you can be morally clear and have deeply held beliefs and at the same time recognize that the world is complicated and these problems are difficult to solve.”
The crowd erupted in applause.
Biden’s team has taken steps to do so minimize disruptionsincluding reducing the number of events and pausing exact locations longer than usual after: speech in January when pro-Palestinian protesters interrupted him a dozen times.
On Thursday, more than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters chanted slogans such as “Biden, Biden, you are a liar” and waved Palestinian flags and signs with anti-war messages outside an auditorium in New York.
The Abandon Biden group encouraged people to protest against the president during his visit over the White House’s handling of the war between Israel and Hamas.
“We cannot stand idly by as our president aids and abets genocide in Gaza,” Mosaab Sadia, co-chair of the New York-based group, said in an announcement. “The movement to dump Biden is just getting started.”
At Radio City Music Hall, the novelty of getting three presidents in the identical room didn’t go unnoticed by the participants.
Previously in this system entitled Kaling joked that Biden, Obama and Clinton were in the identical room, saying that when someone shouts “Mr. President,” three people turn around.
Ticket prices started at $250, but the largest donations reached half a million dollars. Photographer Annie Leibovitz was scheduled to take photos of some of the biggest donors with all three presidents.
First lady Jill Biden called the program “the fundraiser to finish all fundraisers.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. also provided comments.
For the three presidents, the fundraiser culminated a day of mobilization that included the opportunity to participate in an interview for the “SmartLess” podcast, which the White House said shall be available at a later, unspecified date.
They also participated in a discussion with Biden’s campaign manager, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, which was streamed to grassroots donors. The presidents talked about their reelection efforts – each Clinton and Obama served two terms – in addition to lighter topics, resembling their favorite ice cream.
“You are all part of the incredible team we are building, and we are just getting started,” Biden said in his closing message during the discussion. “So let’s continue. Let’s win in November.”
The trio arrived at Radio City Music Hall together in “The Beast,” the president’s motorcade car.
Biden also invited Obama for a ride in the “Beast” after landing at John Paul II International Airport. John F. Kennedy, where they enjoyed catching up on their personal and professional lives, an Obama adviser told NBC News.
The show of unity between Biden, Clinton and Obama contrasts sharply with Trump, who faces opposition from his own members own administrationincluding former vice president Mike Penceseeking to return to the White House in November.
Former President George W. Bush – the only other former Republican president – refused to support Trump in 2020.
The Trump campaign has not held a major event since March 16. Earlier on Thursday Trump attended the wake for a New York police officer who was shot and killed in Queens on Monday.
A March poll by CNBC found Biden and Trump voting neck and neck: 46% of voters support Trump and 45% support Biden. However, in this poll, Trump led Biden by 30 percentage points when respondents were asked which candidate was best on economic issues.
During Thursday’s moderated discussion, Colbert asked Clinton what he would tell voters who don’t feel the economy is strong. Clinton responded that the 2008 recession and Covid continued to influence voters and that Trump had failed to sustain the economic growth spurred by Obama. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris methodically “put Humpty Dumpty back together,” Clinton said.
“We should not make the mistake of 2016 again,” he added, referring to the situation wherein Trump defeated his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
