Biden wouldn't have raised $25M without celebrities, Obama, Clinton: Hal Lambert
GOP megadonor Hal Lambert joins 'Your World with Neil Cavuto' to discuss the fundraising efforts of President Biden and former President Trump.
President Biden headlined a Radio City Music Hall fundraiser Thursday that was set to bring in $25 million for his re-election campaign.
Despite the eye-popping figure, one Republican megadonor claimed to Fox News the event was actually a bad sign for the incumbent.
Point Bridge Capital founder Hal Lambert told "Your World" a factor in the haul was the guest list and the figures who were appearing alongside Biden. For instance, a group photo with Biden, former President Clinton and former President Obama would reportedly set an attendee back $100,000.
Lambert, whose investment firm features the "MAGA" ETF, said Biden will raise "plenty of money," but questioned how much he would haul in if it weren't for his star-studded partners and emcees.
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CBS host Stephen Colbert was scheduled to moderate a discussion among the presidents, while "The Office" star Mindy Kaling had been named host of the event.
DreamWorks Pictures co-founder and ex-Disney executive Jeffrey Katzenberg helped organize the event, Variety reported, while also listing Queen Latifah, Lizzo and British songstress Cynthia Erivo among the attendees.
"Having the celebrities there and having the former presidents there says a lot about Biden's effort to be able to raise money on his own," Lambert said.
"I don't think he would come close to that number of $25 million had he not had all the celebrities and not the former presidents there."
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Lambert added Biden likely needed Clinton and Obama to join him so that the guests could be entertained, and that he could communicate with the audience.
"I think it's difficult for him to do at this point. I actually think it's a bad sign," he said.
Lambert contrasted Thursday's venue with an upcoming Trump fundraiser. He expects that Biden will raise more funds this quarter than Trump, but estimated the GOP nominee's upcoming event will also haul in a similar amount to Biden's Radio City party.
"He's going to have over $25 million raised in his fundraiser, and he doesn't have anybody else showing up there that are superstars to help him raise it. He's doing it on his own," he said.
Lambert credited some of Biden's quarterly haul to the fact that Trump was not the presumptive nominee until partway into the year, when former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley dropped out of the primary.
Now that Trump is alone in the GOP sweeps, "that brings the RNC money in," Lambert said.
"[That] is why people are probably wondering, ‘Well, how does someone give a half-million dollars?’ Well, they go through all these committees and there's ways to do it once you're the nominee. Biden's the nominee. He can do it. Trump can now do it as well."
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