At an October 2024 campaign event in Houston, pop superstar Beyonce made an appearance to voice her support for the Democratic Presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris. This occurred around the same time Beyonce was wrapping up her Cowboy Carter tour with a final bash in Las Vegas reunited with her Destiny’s Child compatriots. In a surprising and somewhat ridiculous twist, former President Donald Trump made an unexpected and unfounded claim about this event via Truth Social post, which entailed a controversial suggestion about Harris and an alleged huge payout to Beyonce.
Trump revisited a longstanding, yet baseless, allegation, suggesting the Democrats were deep in debt following the Presidential Election. Adding to that, he made a spurious claim that they coughed up $11 Million to Beyonce for an endorsement. This would indeed be an exorbitant expense for a mere endorsement, particularly considering the fact that she didn’t even perform at the event. To add insult to injury, according to Trump, she exited the stage amid an uproar of booing and dissatisfaction.
Without any backing or credible data to substantiate his claim, Trump further insisted the payment was probably made illegally. He then took a step further, stating that Harris should face prosecution for this supposed irregular paid endorsement. However, there is no concrete evidence to back up Trump’s allegation that a cash transaction of this scale took place between the Democratic party and Beyonce.
It remains unclear on what grounds or which credible sources Trump was basing his allegations. His posts left everyone perplexed, and inquiries directed to the White House to clarify his statement were met with silence. Meanwhile, on the intended date, Beyoncé expressed her support for Harris as expected at a Houston campaign rally.
In response to these allegations, Beyonce’s management deemed the claims as ‘beyond ridiculous.’ To further clear the air, it was established that Beyonce didn’t perform at the event as suggested by Trump. On the contrary, she made her appearance and expressed her support for Kamala Harris amidst her 2024 Presidential run against Trump.
Data from the Federal Election Commission shows that the Harris campaign disbursed a rather frugal amount of $165,000 to Beyoncé’s production company, Parkwood Production Media, LLC. Recorded on Nov. 19, 2024, this payment was clearly described as a campaign event production expense rather than an endorsement fee. This figure is significantly less than the $11 million claimed by Trump.
Harris’s campaign disclosed that they have made zero payments of such an immense amount to anyone. Federal regulations place a cap on the amount that corporations can contribute to political campaigns or elections. While there are provisions allowing a performer to appear for free at events, the campaign often bears the cost of staging and other equipment.
While the misinformation surrounding Beyonce’s endorsement of Harris continued to circulate, Tina Knowles, Beyoncé’s mother and former manager, took to Instagram in November to dispel the rumors. She stated categorically that her daughter received no payment for her appearance and even covered her own travel expenses for herself and her team.
Against this backdrop, Trump’s subsequent claim that it’s illegal for a political candidate to pay for endorsements was also met with skepticism. The Federal Election Commission’s deputy press officer, Myles Martin, shed light on this matter by pointing to the guidelines on their campaign disbursement page.
The disbursement page clearly outlines how campaign funds can be utilized to sway the federal election in favor of the candidate. Significantly, there are no laws indicating that candidates are barred from paying for endorsements. The page further stipulates that candidates are under legal obligation to report payments.
In summary, there’s a wide gap between Trump’s high-profile claims of illegal endorsement payments and the reality. His insinuations about the Democrats’ indebtedness following the Presidential Election, as well as his allegations about a gargantuan sum paid to Beyonce, lacked substance and evidence. The entire episode stokes the fires of misinformation and underlines the necessity for accurate reporting in politics.
The unfounded claims and baseless arguments cast a shadow on the verity of Trump’s statements. In light of actual records and fact-checking, the Democrats’ purported payment of $11 million to Beyonce for an endorsement proves to be devoid of any factual grounding. The anticipatory narrative built around this controversy collapsed under the weight of its own absurdity.
We find the allegation that Harris has made illegal payments, or that Beyonce was paid such an extravagant sum for her endorsement, to be wholly untrue. Not only do these claims straddle the line between fiction and reality, but they also blur the line between political gamesmanship and outright falsehoods. Given the facts, Trump’s statement that the Democrats paid Beyonce $11 million for an endorsement is unequivocally False.
The post Democrats in Debt: Harris’s Alleged Multi-Million Payoff to Beyoncé appeared first on Real News Now.
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