George Clooney endorses Kamala Harris as presidential candidate
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Clooney endorses the new Democratic replacement as he hails Biden's withdrawal from the race, showing "true leadership".
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George Clooney attends a special screening of "The Boys in the Boat," Dec. 13, 2023, in New York (AP)
Hollywood actor and director George Clooney announced that he is "excited" to support Vice President Kamala Harris as Joe Biden's replacement while hailing his exit.
In his statement to CNN, Clooney said, "President Biden has shown what true leadership is. He's saving democracy once again. We're all so excited to do whatever we can to support Vice President Harris in her historic quest."
Just two weeks ago, Clooney called on Biden to step down alongside many other Democrats. He published an op-ed in The New York Times earlier this month expressing the need for a new Democratic nominee.
Clooney is one of the prominent fundraisers for the Democratic party, hosting an event in June that boosted Biden's presidential campaign by over $30 million. However, in his op-ed, he expressed his concern for the current president's health following his faltered performance at the first debate.
"It’s devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fundraiser was not the Joe ‘big F-ing deal’ Biden of 2010. He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate," Clooney wrote, adding, "This isn’t only my opinion; this is the opinion of every senator and Congress member and governor who I’ve spoken with in private."
Democratic fundraiser ActBlue reported that it has already processed $46.7 million in donations, just two hours after declaring it had raised $27.5 million in response to President Joe Biden's withdrawal from the presidential run and his endorsement of Kamala Harris.
In 24 hours, Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign raised $81 million - a new presidential donation record - following President Biden's departure from the race.
Meanwhile, Barack Obama, a former Democrat US president, expressed his trust in the Democratic Party's ability to set up a process to select the best candidate for president on Sunday, declining to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris.
The same day, NBC News revealed that rather than nominating Harris right away, Democrats in the US Congress stated they would like to have an open election to select the Democratic nominee to succeed Biden.
Meanwhile, in a statement, former US President Bill Clinton and his spouse Hillary said that they are "honored to join the President in endorsing Vice President Harris."
