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President Donald Trump shared a scathing Truth Social post in which he demanded that former Vice President Kamala Harris, Beyoncé, Oprah Winfrey and Rev. Al Sharpton be prosecuted for alleged illegal payments to endorse Harris' presidential campaign.
"I’m looking at the large amount of money owed by the Democrats, after the Presidential Election, and the fact that they admit to paying, probably illegally, Eleven Million Dollars to singer Beyoncé for an ENDORSEMENT (she never sang, not one note, and left the stage to a booing and angry audience!), Three Million Dollars for “expenses,” to Oprah, Six Hundred Thousand Dollars to very low rated TV “anchor,” Al Sharpton (a total lightweight!), and others to be named for doing, absolutely NOTHING! These ridiculous fees were incorrectly stated in the books and records. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PAY FOR AN ENDORSEMENT. IT IS TOTALLY ILLEGAL TO DO SO. Can you imagine what would happen if politicians started paying for people to endorse them. All hell would break out! Kamala, and all of those that received Endorsement money, BROKE THE LAW. They should all be prosecuted! Thank you for your attention to this matter," Trump wrote.
Harris' campaign had previously faced scrutiny for payments of more than $165,000 to Beyoncé's production company, Parkwood Entertainment, for a Houston rally on October 26. The singer's mother, Tina Knowles, denied reports that her daughter was paid up to $11 million to speak on Harris' behalf at the rally.
Winfrey's production company, Harpo Productions, was reportedly paid $1 million to stream a Harris event from Michigan. Sharpton's National Action network was also reportedly paid $500,000. Trump, however, cited different numbers in his Truth Social post and it's unclear where those statistics came from.
Beyoncé, Winfrey and Sharpton have all backed Democratic candidates prior to the 2024 election, most notably former President Barack Obama, who Trump also accused of being "guilty" of "treason" and called on the U.S. Department of Justice to order an assessment that Russia helped him meddle with the 2016 presidential election last Tuesday (July 22).
"Out of respect for the office of the presidency, our office does not normally dignify the constant nonsense and misinformation flowing out of this White House with a response," Obama spokesperson Patrick Rodenbush said via NBC News. "But these claims are outrageous enough to merit one. These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction."
Trump's successful 2016 presidential campaign was launched after he served as a leading figure in the "birther" movement questioning whether Obama, a native of Hawaii, was secretly born in Kenya, which resulted in the 44th president releasing a long-form version of his Hawaiian birth certificate in 2011. The president had previously accused Obama of ordering feds to "spy" on his campaign amid accusations of ties to Russia following the 2016 election.
Obama has also taken shots at Trump in the past, which included targeting his "weird obsession with crowd sizes" while holding his hands about four inches apart, mocking the 45th president's manhood. Obama also critiqued Trump's lenghty speeches as being "like Fidel Castro -- just on and on" and referenced his "constant attempts to sell you stuff," which included his golden sneakers and branded Bibles.