President Biden is scheduled to arrive in Los Angeles today for a campaign fundraiser at the home of Israeli American media mogul Haim Saban, possibly setting off protests over the U.S. role in Israel’s war against Hamas.
Tension has been mounting within the Democratic Party over Biden’s support for Israel as it bombards the Gaza Strip in retaliation for Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
The Biden administration has been a steadfast ally to Israel, preparing to send additional weapons to the nation even as the president has described the military campaign against Gaza as “over the top” and reportedly privately expressed frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The administration has called for a temporary cease-fire in a draft resolution submitted to the United Nations Security Council, according to a CNN report Monday.
But the issue has divided California Democrats — in November, their convention was shut down early after about 1,000 protesters stormed into the Sacramento venue.
In December, the last time Biden visited Los Angeles to raise money, demonstrators staged major rallies in support of Palestinians, calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and an end to U.S. financial and military aid to Israel. Vandals spray-painted “Baby killers,” “LA says no to Genocide Joe” and “Ceasefire now!!! End the war crimes!” on buildings in the Westwood area.
Such protests could recur today. Saban is a major Israel supporter, and other hosts of the fundraiser have deep ties to the Jewish community. Co-host Leslie Gilbert-Lurie is a former television executive who has written a book about her experience as the daughter of a Holocaust survivor, and co-host Nicole Mutchnik is vice chair of the Anti-Defamation League, which fights antisemitism and other forms of bigotry. Other co-hosts include Casey Wasserman, chair of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee; StubHub co-founder Eric Baker; former Obama Ambassador to Germany John Emerson and former studio chief Bob Daly. Tickets for the event cost up to $250,000.
Biden has to thread a careful line, so as to not alienate core segments of the Democratic coalition — Jewish voters, young people and people of color who are key to his reelection effort. Biden administration officials met this month with Arab American and Muslim leaders in Michigan in an attempt to foster relationships with a community that could influence who wins the crucial swing state in this year’s election.
A super PAC supporting former President Trump, Biden’s likely opponent in the November general election, has seized on tension over the Israel-Hamas war as Biden arrives in California. It is running digital ads targeting social media users in Saban’s ZIP Code that focus on White House officials’ meeting with Osama Siblani, a Michigan newspaper publisher who has previously praised the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah.
“Joe Biden continues to embrace America’s enemies. The White House’s embrace of Osama Siblani is an affront to the dozens of Americans and hundreds of Israelis who lost their lives on Oct. 7, and the millions of Israelis who wake up every morning under siege by Islamic terrorism,” Alex Pfeiffer, spokesman for the MAGA Inc. super PAC, said in a statement.
Biden’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment on the attack ad.
This is probably Biden’s last trip to California before Super Tuesday on March 5, when California and more than a dozen other states hold primary elections. In the 2020 presidential contest, his campaign raised $145.4 million from Californians, the most of any state in the nation, according to campaign finance disclosures filed with the Federal Election Commission. (And that doesn’t include donations to super PACs and other groups that supported his bid.)
His campaign’s fundraising efforts were stymied last year by the entertainment industry strikes.
On Tuesday, the campaign announced that the combined groups supporting Biden’s 2024 presidential campaign raised more than $42 million in January and had $130 million in the bank, the most any Democratic presidential candidate has had at this point in the electoral cycle.
“January’s fundraising haul — driven by a powerhouse grassroots fundraising program that continues to grow month by month — is an indisputable show of strength to start the election year,” campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said in a statement.
The president is expected to speak at an official event Wednesday before leaving the Southland and heading to the Bay Area, where he is scheduled to hold additional fundraisers before leaving the state on Thursday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Seema Mehta
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