Security in New York City is at an all-time high, and traffic jams brought the city to a standstill on Thursday (Mar. 28) as US President Joe Biden and three of his predecessors visited the Big Apple.
Former President and 2024 Republican nominee Donald Trump reportedly visited the wake of the fallen NYPD officer Jonathan Diller.
Meanwhile, current US President Joe Biden was joined by two of his Democrat predecessors - Bill Clinton and Barack Obama - in a campaign fundraiser at the Radio City Music Hall Thursday night, with the Associated Press reporting that the political event targeted to raise $25 million, and is set to become the largest fundraiser in US political history.
Obama was seen hitching a ride from Washington to New York aboard Air Force One with Biden, waving together as they descended the plane's steps at the John F. Kennedy International Airport before getting into a motorcade into Midtown Manhattan to meet with Clinton, who went ahead of them in the venue.
Star-Studded Show
The fundraiser - hosted by Stephen Colbert and Mindy Kaling and featuring musical acts from Queen Latifah, Lizzo, Ben Platt, Cynthia Erivo, and Lea Michele - has different access tiers depending on a donor's generosity.
Thousands were expected to attend, with tickets costing a minimum of $225.
An after-party for 500 select guests would follow the main event, hosted by First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and DJ D-Nice.
"This historic raise is a show of strong enthusiasm for President Biden and Vice President Harris and a testament to the unprecedented fundraising machine we've built," Biden campaign co-chair Jeffrey Katzenberg said. "Unlike our opponent (Trump), every dollar we're raising is going to reach the voters who will decide this election - communicating the president's historic record, his vision for the future and laying plain the stakes of this election."
On the other hand, Trump's campaign is expecting to bring in $33 million at a big fundraiser next week in Palm Beach, Florida, according to a person familiar with the details who spoke on condition of anonymity to confirm a number first reported by the Financial Times.
Pro-Palestine Protesters Poop Presidential Party
Outside the venue, hundreds of pro-Palestine protesters attempted to approach Radio City Music Hall ahead of the Biden campaign fundraiser as part of the "Flood Manhattan for Gaza" demonstration by the Abandon Biden protest group.
According to the New York Post, the demonstrators - waving Palestinian flags and other banners - stormed Sixth Avenue chanting slogans such as "Free, free Palestine," "Genocide Joe has got to go," and even "F*** Joe Biden."
Some of the signs protesters held denounced the president and the Democratic Party as "war criminals," while others read: "End all US aid to Israel."
The NYPD had arrested at least one demonstrator for disorderly conduct.
Biden's New York fundraiser took place ahead of the state's Democratic primary next week, with progressive Democrats calling on voters to "leave [their ballots] blank" during the November vote.
"While Presidents Biden, Obama, and Clinton try to whine and dine donors in New York City, New Yorkers of all kinds have come out to voice their complete rejection of Genocide Joe," Abandon Biden New York co-chair Mosaab Sadia said in a statement obtained by The Hill. "We cannot idly sit by as our president aides and abets genocide in Gaza. The movement to Abandon Biden is only just beginning."
