Donald Trump Says He Plans To Call For Investigation Of Kamala Harris' Endorsements From Bruce Springsteen, Beyoncé And Other Celebrities
Bruce Springsteen's criticisms of Donald Trump last week appear to have triggered the president even further, as he is now calling for an investigation of the superstar singer's endorsement of Kamala Harris, as well as other entertainers.
Trump wrote on Truth Social, 'HOW MUCH DID KAMALA HARRIS PAY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN FOR HIS POOR PERFORMANCE DURING HER CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT? WHY DID HE ACCEPT THAT MONEY IF HE IS SUCH A FAN OF HERS? ISN'T THAT A MAJOR AND ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION? WHAT ABOUT BEYONCÉ? …AND HOW MUCH WENT TO OPRAH, AND BONO??? I am going to call for a major investigation into this matter. Candidates aren't allowed to pay for ENDORSEMENTS, which is what Kamala did, under the guise of paying for entertainment. In addition, this was a very expensive and desperate effort to artificially build up her sparse crowds. IT'S NOT LEGAL! For these unpatriotic 'entertainers,' this was just a CORRUPT & UNLAWFUL way to capitalize on a broken system. Thank you for your attention to this matter!!!'
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At his opening concert last week as part of his European tour, Springsteen called out Trump's administration as 'corrupt, incompetent and treasonous.' Trump lashed out at Springsteen several days later.
Trump's latest posted revives accusations that surfaced in the aftermath of the 2024 election: That Winfrey and others were paid for their endorsements and campaign appearances. But Adrienne Elrod, who served as senior adviser and senior spokesperson for the Harris campaign, told Deadline at the time, 'We do not pay. We have never paid any artist and performer. We have never paid a fee to that person.'
Campaign finance records showed that Winfrey's production company, Harpo Productions, was paid a total of $1 million for event production. But campaign finance rules require campaigns to pay the fair market value for the ancillary costs of holding events — everything from staging to the band to food and drink. A performer could contribute those costs, but those count against campaign contribution limits.
'I did not take any personal fee. However, the people who worked on that production needed to be paid. And were. End of story,' Winfrey said in a TMZ video.
During the campaign, Trump himself relied on endorsements from Kid Rock and Lee Greenwood, among others.
Springsteen has continued to speak out about Trump, even after the president warned him that he should 'keep his mouth shut' and warning of consequences. Per the Los Angeles Times, Springsteen said at a concert on Saturday, 'Things are happening right now that are altering the very nature of our country's democracy, and they're too important to ignore.'
Some of Trump's allies have claimed that Springsteen's criticism of Trump is denigrating the United States. Steve Hilton, the former Fox News personality running for governor of California, wrote on X of Springsteen, 'I'm disgusted to see him running around England criticizing our country. Maybe he should stay there!' But Springsteen was criticizing the Trump administration, not the USA, just as Hilton was a vocal critic of Joe Biden when he was president.
Since he took office, Trump has sought to eliminate dissent and anyone perceived as disloyal. He has fired Democrats from the Federal Trade Commission, ousted Joe Biden's appointees to the Kennedy Center and the Holocaust Memorial Foundation, and sought to eliminate Voice of America and other U.S.-funded international broadcasters that are set up to run independently of each administration's influence.
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