By Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times –
LOS ANGELES — In an exclusive backyard soiree at George Clooney’s house in Studio City, President Barack Obama headlined a star-studded fundraiser Thursday night that pumped nearly $15 million into his re-election effort, believed to be the largest one-night campaign haul ever.
The dinner party took place one day after Obama announced his support for gay marriage, a popular issue with the Hollywood crowd and one that he highlighted.
(PHOTO: President Obama arrives in Los Angeles, California, and heads for the home of actor George Clooney for a fundrasier for the president’s re-election campaign on Thursday, May 10, 2012.)
“Obviously yesterday we made some news,” Obama said to applause. “But the truth is it was a logical extension of what America is supposed to be. It grew directly out of this difference in visions. Are we a country that includes everybody and gives everybody a shot and treats everybody fairly and is that going to make us stronger? Are we welcoming to immigrants? Are we welcoming to people who aren’t like us — does that make us stronger? I believe it does. So that’s what’s at stake.”
The gathering took place under a tent on the basketball court in Clooney’s backyard, and was hosted by DreamWorks Animation chief Jeffrey Katzenberg. About 150 people paid $40,000 each to attend, and gathered around circular tables decorated with gold tablecloths and yellow and purple flowers.
Wolfgang Puck cooked for the attendees, including Robert Downey Jr., Diane Von Furstenberg, Trina Turk, Barbra Streisand, James Brolin, Tobey Maguire, Billy Crystal, Jack Black, Salma Hayek, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Rep. Howard L. Berman, D-Calif.
But not all the attendees were bold-faced names. The Obama campaign held a contest for supporters across the nation, asking for donations of as little as $3 for a chance to win airfare to Los Angeles and a spot at the dinner.
The contest proved wildly successful — tens of thousands of people contributed an average of $23, with their donations making up two-thirds of the $15-million haul. The winners were Beth Topinka, a science teacher from Manalapan, N.J., and Karen Blutcher, a utility company worker from St. Augustine, Fla. Both women brought their husbands.
Obama, who spoke for 19 minutes, thanked Clooney and noted that they had known each other for some time; Clooney was advocating for Darfur when Obama was a senator. The famous stylized “Hope” picture of Obama was cut from a photo of both of them, the president said.
“This is the first time that George Clooney has actually been photoshopped out of a picture,” Obama said to laughter. “Never happened before, will never happen again.”
“We raised a lot of money because everybody loves George. They like me; they love him,” he added.
Obama laid out a familiar argument about the perils facing the nation when he took office, and the progress that has been made, such as job creation and the rebound of the auto industry. He noted that he ended a war, pursued al-Qaida, and kept the “basic promise” of the 2008 campaign by enacting health care reform. “Not because it was popular, but because it was right.”
He also cited work on Wall Street reform, reforming education, “sometimes offending folks in our own party,” and increased investments in clean energy.
Obama never mentioned Romney or Republicans by name but alluded to them.
“We’re not finished. We have a lot more work. As we look forward to the next campaign, the choice between the path I’ve set for this country and that of my opponent could not be starker and the stakes couldn’t be higher,” he said. “They have a different vision about how America works. See, I think we work best when we are all in it together, when we’ve all got a stake in each other.”
He joked that he had aged. “People have commented on the fact I’ve got gray hair now. There was a blog post about look how wrinkly Obama is getting. Sort of distressing. George doesn’t have to go through these things,” Obama said.
Clooney interjected: “You look good to me!”
Obama ended with a sober recognition that 2012 is far different from 2008.
“This is going to be harder than it was last time, not only because I’m older and grayer and your ‘Hope’ posters are dog-eared. 2008 in some ways was lightning in a bottle,” he said.
