President Joe Biden was joined Thursday by two of his Democratic predecessors for a star-studded fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall that his campaign said brought in more than $25 million.
Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton are attending the event in New York with more than 5,000 supporters — including several protesters who interrupted the program when the three presidents were speaking.
Actor and comedian Mindy Kaling is hosting the event, and late night host Stephen Colbert moderated a conversation with Biden, Clinton and Obama. Special guests include celebrities like Queen Latifah, Lizzo, Ben Platt, Cynthia Erivo and Lea Michele.
During the moderated conversation, Colbert joked that the moment was historic because “three presidents have come to New York, and not one of them to appear in court,” taking a jab at former President Donald Trump’s criminal indictments and civil trials.
Clinton also took a swipe at the presumptive GOP nominee, arguing that “Trump had a good couple of years because he stole them from Barack Obama.”
But the discussion was interrupted at least five times by protesters. Colbert acknowledged one protester and asked Biden about the U.S. role in ensuring a peaceful and prosperous future for both Israelis and Palestinians.
Biden said that more needed to be done to get relief into Gaza, but added that Israel’s very existence was at stake. The president also discussed diplomatic efforts toward a two-state solution. His response was met with a standing ovation and chants of “four more years.”
Obama sternly addressed a protester when he was interrupted, saying, “You can’t just talk and not listen.” He added, “that’s what the other side does.”
Biden’s team has taken steps to minimize disruptions, including making events smaller and withholding exact locations longer than usual, after a January speech where he was interrupted about a dozen times by pro-Palestinian protesters.
Outside the New York venue on Thursday, more than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters chanted slogans like “Biden, Biden, you’re a liar,” and waved Palestinian flags and signs with anti-war messages.
The group Abandon Biden encouraged people to protest the president during his visit over the White House’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war.
“We cannot idly sit by as our president aides and abets genocide in Gaza,” the group’s New York co-chair Mosaab Sadia said in a statement. “The movement to Abandon Biden is only just beginning.”
