US president Joe Biden joined former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, plus some big names from the entertainment world, as they teamed up to raise more than $26 million (€24 million) for his re-election campaign.
Mr Obama praised Mr Biden’s willingness to look for common ground during the event at Radio City Music Hall in New York saying, “That’s the kind of president I want.”
Mr Clinton said simply of the choices facing voters in 2024: “Stay with what works.”
Mr Biden himself went straight at Donald Trump, saying his expected Republican rival’s ideas were “a little old and out of shape”.
Moderator Stephen Colbert, in an armchair conversation with the trio, called them “champion talkers” and joked that the three presidents had come to town “and not one of them is here to appear in court,” a dig at Mr Trump’s many legal troubles.
The sold-out Radio City Music Hall event, hosted by Stephen Colbert, ended Mr Biden’s burst of campaign travel. In the three weeks since his State of the Union address, he has visited several political battlegrounds.
Protesters angry at the handling of the war in Gaza and support of Israel briefly disrupted the show, drawing a pledge from Mr Biden to keep working to stop civilian deaths, particularly of children, before adding “Israel’s existence is at stake”.
Hundreds more protested outside in the drizzling rain, many demanding a ceasefire and waving Palestinian flags.
Mr Obama laid out the choice for the audience, saying that “at the end of the day, you do have to make a choice about who sees you and cares about you. I’m pretty confident the other guy doesn’t.”
Other participating celebrities included Queen Latifah, Ben Platt, Cynthia Erivo and Lea Michele.
Tickets sold for as low as $22 (£20). With more money, donors received more intimate time with the presidents.
A photo with all three was $100,000 (€92,700). A donation of $250,000 earned donors access to one reception and $500,000 got them into an even more exclusive gathering.
Through the end of February, Mr Biden had $155 million (€143 million) in cash on hand, compared with $37 million (€34 million) for Mr Trump and his Save America political action committee.
The more than tally for the New York City event includes money from supporters who handed over cash in the weeks before the fundraiser for a chance to attend. It raised $6 million more than Mr Trump raised during February.
Mr Trump has kept a low profile in recent weeks, partially because of courtroom appearances for various legal cases, the bills for which he is paying with funds from donors.
His next political rallies are scheduled for Tuesday in Michigan and Wisconsin.
