Oprah Winfrey breaks silence on ‘being paid $1million to help Kamala Harris’ marketing campaign
Oprah Winfrey has denied being paid $1million to help Kamala Harris by hosting a star-studded town hall event for the Vice President in September.
While walking to her car after a workout in Santa Barbara, Oprah was approached by a reporter for TMZ who quizzed her on some hot topics.
‘Not true’ she said when asked about the alleged payment. ‘I was paid nothing. Ever.’
The talk show legend initially made it clear she did not discuss President-elect Trump’s landslide victory while walking down the street in gym clothes.
‘I’m not talking about the election,’ she demurred.
As Oprah climbed into her SUV, the reporter asked if she ‘thinks Prince Harry is going to lose his visa’ when Trump takes over in The White House. She simply closed the door.
Oprah Winfrey has denied being paid $1million to help Kamala Harris with her campaign and host a star-studded town hall event for the Vice President in September
In total, the Harris campaign spent $1.2billion on the race while Trump’s campaign spent $750 million, a Financial Times analysis found, although some believe Harris’s spending could be even higher.
Speaking to TMZ on Monday as she walked up to her car, when asked about the alleged payment, Oprah simply said it was ‘not true’ and that ‘I was paid nothing. Ever.’
Oprah Winfrey holds hands with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris after introducing her to speak during a campaign rally outside the Philadelphia Museum last Monday night
Harris also reportedly spent six figures to build out the set for her October appearance on the hit podcast ‘Call Her Daddy’, where she sat down with the show’s host Alex Cooper.
According to a report by The Washington Examiner, her campaign spent six figures alone on building out the very beige set of the podcast for her small appearance.
The outlet also reported that it was filmed inside a hotel room in Washington DC, with crews building the set to imitate Cooper’s actual set in Los Angeles.
The Harris campaign, affiliated PACs and the Democratic National Committee amassed over $2.3 billion in political contributions.
Kamala Harris joined Oprah at a Unite for America livestreamed rally in Michigan in September
According to a report by The Washington Examiner , her campaign had spent six figures on building out the set of the podcast for her small appearance
Event production, like the podcast appearance, was a big spend for the campaign who hosted the likes of Lady Gaga (pictured at Harris’s Philadelphia rally) and Katy Perry on the eve of the election
After raising nearly $4.2 billion, they spent a combined $3.5 billion on the presidential race, making it the most expensive contest ever held according to the analysis.
Donald Trump‘s team, affiliated PACs and the Republican National Committee raised $1.8 billion.
Despite spending less, Trump ended up trouncing Harris in the electoral and popular vote – which hasn’t been done by the GOP in decades.
The Examiner explored ways in which the Harris campaign had managed to burn through the eye-watering figure, which included the podcast appearance.
According to the outlet, her campaign and its affiliates spent over $654 million from July to Election Day. Trump spent $378 million, 57 percent less than her.
While Harris avoided the show’s typically sexual content, she spoke of her take on abortion rights and student debt during the seven minute sit down
The Vice President had sat down with host of the raunchy show Alexandra Cooper, seen here, in October while on the campaign trail
Katy Perry performs during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris at Carrie Blast Furnaces in Pittsburgh, November 4, 2024
One vendor, Village Marketing Agency, was paid over $3.9 million to recruit social media influencers to boost Harris’ online appeal.
Event production, like the podcast appearance, was a big spend for the campaign who hosted the likes of Lady Gaga and Katy Perry on the eve of the election.
According to federal filings, the campaign paid over $15 million to companies for such services.
A better idea of their actual spending will be made clear as the Federal Election Commission mandates full reports from candidates within 30 days.
As Democrats still try and gather themselves following their loss to Trump earlier this week, Biden and Harris’ teams are blaming each other for wasting their cash.
Workers in the White House and on the campaigns are ruthlessly continuing their blame game as to whether the president or vice president really dropped the ball.
Not only did their campaign end in disaster, but to add insult to injury the operation is reportedly in debt, Politico reports, to the tune of $20 million dollars.
Biden staff say the vice president ran a terrible, three-month campaign and squandered millions of dollars from their top donors.
‘How did you spend $1 billion and not win? What the f***?’ said a former Biden staffer infuriated by the Harris team excuses.
MailOnline has contacted the Harris campaign for comment.
