Current:Home > FinanceJeff Bridges, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, more stars join 'White Dudes for Harris' Zoom -CapitalWay
Jeff Bridges, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, more stars join 'White Dudes for Harris' Zoom
View
Date:2025-04-17 20:13:30
Hollywood's "white dudes" are rallying around Kamala Harris.
Jeff Bridges, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Mark Hamill were among the stars who participated in a Zoom call Monday to raise money for Vice President Kamala Harris' presidential campaign, which was dubbed "White Dudes for Harris" and streamed on YouTube. Numerous politicians, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, also took part.
Early in the call, Bridges said he's "excited" about Harris' campaign and that President Joe Biden had "beautifully" passed the baton to her by dropping out of the race.
"I can see her being president," Bridges said. "I'm so excited. A woman president, man. How exciting! And her championing of women's rights, I'm for that."
White Dudes for Harrisraises $4 million: 'The vibes right now are incredible'
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
The actor, who famously played The Dude in "The Big Lebowski," also joked he was brought to the "White Dudes for Harris" call "not so much (for) being white, and I certainly am, but because I'm a dude," adding, "I'm white, I'm a dude, and I'm for Harris."
Josh Groban spoke after Buttigieg, with the Grammy-nominated singer saying that "as a white guy," when "the world has been built for you," it can be "so much easier" not to be politically outspoken.
"It's easy to assume somebody else will step up," but "I am proud to raise my hand and to say that this is something that I believe so fully in," Groban said. "I'm so excited by the galvanizing of the Harris campaign."
Later, Joseph Gordon-Levitt slammed former President Donald Trump on the call as a "con man" who will not "look out for middle class, working class, ordinary American people," which is why "we need a president who can prosecute con men like this."
"The Lord of the Rings" star Sean Astin said he is excited to elect a "qualified, tested, proven woman into the presidency, so that all girls for all time can know that that's possible."
Hamill, meanwhile, praised the Biden administration as "the most legislatively successful administration since Franklin Delano Roosevelt" and urged voters to "stand up to (Trump's) mental illness."
Celebritiesback Kamala Harris for president after Joe Biden drops reelection bid
"The West Wing" star Bradley Whitford told participants that he has been active in campaigns in Wisconsin his entire life and has "never felt this kind of enthusiasm ever," but he also urged Harris supporters not to be complacent. "This is so far from a sure thing," he said. "We have to seize this moment."
"Frozen" star Josh Gad recalled that he "stood over my kids' bed and I wept" on the night of the 2016 election because he "felt like I let them down" after America did not elect its first female president. "That feeling of dread, and that feeling of fear, and that feeling of shame is not something I'm ever willing or able to allow myself to feel again," he said.
Comedian Paul Scheer also said that Harris is "the type of president America needs," while "House of Cards" star Michael Kelly said it's "so easy to get behind" Harris, and singer Lance Bass said he is feeling "so hopeful" about the vice president's campaign. "As a white guy, it's easy to think these issues don't affect us directly, but that's exactly why we need to pay attention," Bass said.
Supporters were urged to donate throughout the over three-hour call, and by the time it ended, organizers said more than $4 million had been raised.
As the call began, organizer Ross Morales Rocketto acknowledged that many were "uncomfortable" with the "White Dudes for Harris" idea because "throughout American history, when white men have organized, it was often with pointy hats on." But he said that "the reason that we are doing this is because the left has been ceding white men to the MAGA right for way, way too long."
The fundraising call came after many Hollywood stars expressed support for Harris following Biden's exit from the race. George Clooney, who had urged Biden to drop out, said in a statement to CNN, "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 Harris in her historic quest."
veryGood! (684)
Related
- Costco membership growth 'robust,' even amid fee increase: What to know about earnings release
- Groundhog Day 2023
- A Disillusioned ExxonMobil Engineer Quits to Take Action on Climate Change and Stop ‘Making the World Worse’
- Increased Flooding and Droughts Linked to Climate Change Have Sent Crop Insurance Payouts Skyrocketing
- Finally, good retirement news! Southwest pilots' plan is a bright spot, experts say
- Warming Trends: Tuna for Vegans, Battery Technology and Climate Drives a Tree-Killer to Higher Climes
- Inside Clean Energy: Here’s How Covid-19 Is Affecting The Biggest Source of Clean Energy Jobs
- Despite billions to get off coal, why is Indonesia still building new coal plants?
- 'We're reborn!' Gazans express joy at returning home to north
- Beyoncé's Renaissance tour is Ticketmaster's next big test. Fans are already stressed
Ranking
- Former longtime South Carolina congressman John Spratt dies at 82
- Tornadoes touch down in Chicago area, grounding flights and wrecking homes
- Japan's conveyor belt sushi industry takes a licking from an errant customer
- Defense bill's passage threatened by abortion amendment, limits on Ukraine funding
- Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
- Zoom is the latest tech firm to announce layoffs, and its CEO will take a 98% pay cut
- A Decade Into the Fracking Boom, Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia Haven’t Gained Much, a Study Says
- Warming Trends: Indoor Air Safer From Wildfire Smoke, a Fish Darts off the Endangered List and Dragonflies Showing the Heat in the UK
Recommendation
Could your smelly farts help science?
Can Rights of Nature Laws Make a Difference? In Ecuador, They Already Are
More details emerge about suspect accused of fatally shooting Tennessee surgeon in exam room
Inside Clean Energy: The Coal-Country Utility that Wants to Cut Coal
A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
Amazon reports its first unprofitable year since 2014
Exceptionally rare dinosaur fossils discovered in Maryland
Alabama Public Service Commission Upholds and Increases ‘Sun Tax’ on Solar Power Users