On June 15, 2024, a high-profile Democratic fundraiser in Los Angeles, co-hosted by George Clooney, raised over $30 million for then-President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign.
The event, attended by bigwigs like Barack Obama and Julia Roberts, was meant to energize Biden’s doomed bid against now-President Donald Trump.
Clooney, a lifelong Democrat with a history of hosting major fundraisers, expected a robust performance from Biden, whom he had known for years. Instead, he witnessed a troubling scene that reshaped his view of the president’s fitness for office.
According to an excerpt from “Original Sin” by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, published in The New Yorker, Biden appeared frail upon arriving from a G-7 summit in Italy.
“The President appeared severely diminished, as if he’d aged a decade since Clooney last saw him, in December, 2022,” the authors wrote.
Biden moved slowly, guided by an aide, taking tiny steps that alarmed attendees.
“It was like watching someone who was not alive,” a Hollywood V.I.P. recalled. “It was startling. And we all looked at each other. It was so awful.”
As Biden greeted guests, he repeatedly said, “Thank you for being here.” When he reached Clooney, the president’s lack of recognition was stark. Despite their long acquaintance, Biden offered the same generic greeting, prompting an aide to remind him, “You know George.”
Clooney attempted small talk, asking about Biden’s trip, but received vague responses.
“It seemed clear that the President had not recognized Clooney,” the authors noted, a moment that left the actor deeply unsettled.
“It was not OK,” the Hollywood V.I.P. said. “That thing, the moment where you recognize someone you know — especially a famous person who’s doing a f***ing fund-raiser for you — it was delayed. It was uncomfortable.”
The “Original Sin” authors wrote: “Clooney was shaken to his core. The President hadn’t recognized him, a man he had known for years. Clooney had expressed concern about Biden’s health before — a White House aide had told him a few months before that they were working on getting the President to take longer steps when he walked — but obviously the problem went far beyond his gait.
“This was much graver.”
The fundraiser became a turning point. On July 10, 2024, Clooney published a New York Times Op-Ed urging Biden to exit the race, citing his diminished capacity.
Clooney’s abrupt call drew sharp backlash.
Trump seized the moment, mocking the liberal actor’s late pivot.
“So now fake movie actor George Clooney, who never came close to making a great movie, is getting into the act,” Trump said of Clooney’s about-face on Truth Social. “He’s turned on Crooked Joe like the rats they both are.”
Joe Biden officially ended his re-election bid on July 21, 2024.
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