All Business, Few Attacks From Obama At Hollywood Fundraiser
(LOS ANGELES) It's unlike Barack Obama to hide his talent for fundraising, but last night was different. At two star-studded events in Beverly Hills, Obama raised under $10 million, sources close to the campaign confirmed. But instead of boasting about their haul, they emphasized that the amount was less than what was raised in small online donations in the 24 hours after Sarah Palin's speech at the Republican Convention.
Earlier in the day, his opponent John McCain hit Obama hard for last night's fundraisers, telling an Ohio crowd, "Talk about siding with the people, siding with the people just before he flew off to Hollywood for a fundraiser with Barbra Streisand and his celebrity friends."
"Let me tell you, my friends, there's no place I'd rather be than here with the working men and women of Ohio," McCain said.
Obama took a more subdued approach at the fundraisers, speaking soberly about the economy rather than joking and mocking his opponent. "This should be a celebratory evening, we've got 48 days to go in a campaign, a campaign that started 19 months ago, at a time when a lot of folks thought we might not get here," Obama said at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel but he added, "I'm not in a celebratory mood."
At the $2,300 a person reception headlined by Barbra Streisand, Obama spoke about the tumultuous financial markets, Hurricane Ike, and the deadly train crash outside of Los Angeles. Celebrities such as Ron Howard, Sarah Silverman, Magic Johnson, and Pierce Brosnan were on hand.
Earlier in the evening, Obama spoke at a $28,500/person dinner at the Greyston Mansion, where he was surrounded by Leonardo DiCaprio, Jodi Foster, Will Farrell, among others. Obama said he was confident he would win the election because, 'I've looked at John McCain, I've looked at Sarah Palin, I've looked at their agenda, and they don't have one."
Obama heads back to the campaign trail today – with two events scheduled in Nevada.