Biden appears to freeze up, has to be led off stage by Obama at mega-bucks LA fundraiser
President Biden appeared to freeze up on stage and had to be led off by Barack Obama at the conclusion of a star-studded campaign fundraiser in Los Angeles Saturday night.
The awkward moment took place after Biden and his predecessor sat for a 45-minute interview with late-night host Jimmy Kimmel at the Peacock Theater.
As the men stood for applause, Biden’s gaze seemed to become fixed on the crowd for a full 10 seconds until former President Barack Obama took his wrist and led him offstage.
The incident follows a spate of caught-on-camera moments where Biden appeared dazed or confused about where he was, including when he appeared to wander off at the G7 summit in Apulia, Italy, during parachute exhibition.
In that instance, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stepped in to gently take Biden’s hand and lead him back in time for a group photo with other world leaders.
The Biden campaign raised more than $30 million at the event, which was attended by Hollywood luminaries like George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Barbra Streisand.
The event was also swarmed by hundreds of anti-Israel protesters, who attempted to block entry to the ritzy gala — tickets for which ranged from $250 to $500,000.
Dozens of police clad in riot gear formed a line outside the theater to prevent the protesters’ advance, who shouted jeers at the President including “Biden, Biden you’re a liar, we demand a ceasefire.”
The group also waved Palestinian flags and chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will live forever,” a slight variation on a slogan the Antidefamation League says calls for the eradication of Israel.
No arrests were made, according to the LAPD.
The $30 million haul — reportedly the most a Democratic candidate has ever raised in a single night — comes at a time when the Biden campaign is trying desperately to blunt the fundraising momentum of former President Donald Trump.
Trump raised more than $50 million during an April fundraiser in Florida, and took in tens of millions more after he was found guilty last month in his historic “hush money” trial.
Biden and Obama, as well as First Lady Jill Biden, stirred up the crowd with a collection of common talking points.
The trip hit Trump on everything from the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, to moving the Supreme Court to the right, to threatening retaliation against his political adversaries.
Troubling polling for the Biden administration in recent weeks shows the incumbent lagging Trump in key states such as Arizona, Nevada and Florida.
A particularly ominous survey from Marist College earlier this week even shows Trump has carved out a small lead even in Biden’s boyhood state of Pennsylvania, with a majority of registered voters saying they were better off under the former president.
In an email, the White House hit back at critics who were troubled by the Biden footage, claiming they were, “once again by pretending the President taking in an applauding crowd for a few seconds is somehow wrong.”
