President-elect Donald Trump accused Democrats of breaking the law based on reports that Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential campaign paid for the endorsement of celebrities like singer Beyoncé and media personality Oprah Winfrey.
Newsweek contacted the Harris 2024 crusade and the National Democratic Committee (DNC) by email for comments on Saturday afternoon.
Mentions of celebrities can spur a political crusade by gaining demographic knowledge that they would possibly have trouble doing so. Celebrities and online influencers have a lot of control in the Court of Public Opinion, which politicians can also use for merit in an election cycle.
Disclosure of any paid mentions can help bring more transparency into the election process, giving celebrity enthusiasts and influencers more data into the reasons why their idols may approve of a candidate.
Trump published Saturday morning on his social platform for the truth, “Democrats will pay $ 11,000,000, $ 2,000,000 and $ 500,000 to download the approval of Beyoncé, Oprah and the Reverend to [Sharpton]?”
He added: “I don’t think so! Beyoncé didn’t sing, Oprah did little (she called it “expenses”), and Al is only a third fee.
It is not illegal for political campaigns to pay backs. A spokesman for the Federal Electoral Commission (FEC) said that the verification of facts verified that “no provision in the particular FEC regulations addressed the paid notices of federal candidates. “
However, federal candidates are legally obligated to disclose payments made in exchange for endorsements, according to the FEC spokesperson.
Winfrey, who gave the impression of the last crusade vice president Crusade Rally in Philadelphia, denied the accusations that he was paid for his approval.
“It’s not true. They don’t pay me anything, never,” he told TMZ last month.
Campaigns may pay for expenses related to celebrity events. Winfrey’s production company Harpo Productions was paid by the Harris campaign for production costs for a September livestreaming event with the vice president and Winfrey, a Harpo spokesperson told Variety in November. However, the spokesperson said Winfrey was “at no point during the campaign paid a personal fee, nor did she receive a fee from Harpo.”
Beyoncé, who spoke one of the demonstrations of the Harris Crusade in Houston, was also accused of having been paid to approve Harris, however, several verification sites of the events have demystified the complaint.
Factcheck. org said a Harris Crusade official told them that the statement “is not true. ” Politifact said he did not discover “no evidence” for the statement and that Beyoncé’s publicist told them that it was “more ridiculous. “
Meanwhile, the Washington Free Beacon reported in November that the Harris Crusade had donated two invoices of $ 250,000 to the non -profit network of the Reverendo al Sharpton, weeks before MSNBC’s host put its interview with the vice president the October 20. Sharpton. Gathering demonstrations for Harris 3 days after his interview with the disseminated vice president.
An MSNBC spokesperson told the Washington Free Beacon in a subsequent article last month that the network is not aware of the contributions.
It is unlikely that Trump’s post has some legal effect in Harris, his 2024 crusade or the Democratic Party, however, it could influence the narrative more among the base of the president -elect that the Democrats deceive in the elections, an affirmation that Trump He continuously made in the Wake of his electoral defeat of 2020 before the now president Joe Biden. However, there is no evidence to recommend generalized electoral fraud in the 2020 elections.
Rachel Dobkin is a Newsweek reporter in New York City. The objective is to inform about politics. Rachel joined Newsweek in October 2023. He graduated from New York State University in Oneonta. You can touch Rachel through email to r. dobkin@newsweek. com. langes: English.