A Jubilant Hollywood Embraces Kamala Harris for President as Biden Steps Aside: ‘The Dembargo Is Lifted’

After weeks of anxiety, in-fighting and a halt in fundraising, Hollywood Democrats were largely reunited and hopeful on Sunday after President Joe Biden took the surprise step of bowing out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris to run in his stead. The move came as concerns about Biden’s health and his ability to win the race reached a fever pitch, with high-powered Democratic donors like George Clooney publicly calling for the president to step aside.

“The Dembargo is lifted,” Emmy-winning writer/producer and Democratic donor Damon Lindelof said on Sunday. The “Watchmen” showrunner was one of the first to not only call for the 81-year-old Biden to step aside, but also to ask Democrats to halt fundraising until the president stepped back from the campaign. Dubbed a “Dembargo,” Lindelof argued donors had to induce action with their wallets. 

By Sunday afternoon the faucet was back on and donors and Democratic activists were fired up about Harris.

“Upon hearing news of The President’s decision, I felt profound relief, gratitude.. and then, for the first time, genuine EXCITEMENT for the election ahead,” the showrunner said on Instagram.

Meanwhile celebrities ranging from Spike Lee to Julia Louis Dreyfus to Sheryl Lee Ralph to Mark Ruffalo immediately threw their support behind Harris, as did a swath of Democratic politicians — “I’ve never seen so many people fall in line for something ever,” Rachel Maddow quipped on MSNBC. 

The sense of relief and even joy was palpable among Hollywood Democrats. The Internet went into high gear comparing the plot of “Veep” with events tied to Harris. Both Julia Louis Dreyfus’s character Selina Meyer and Harris found themselves abruptly put into the presidential spotlight after the president stepped aside, albeit only one was in real life.

And Maya Rudolph, who has depicted Harris in Saturday Night Live sketches, became a focus of immediate Internet interest, having debuted her Harris impersonation during the 2020 election cycle in SNL’s impeachment town hall sketch, when she introduced herself as “America’s cool aunt. A fun aunt. I call that a ‘Funt.’”

Other high-profile Hollywood Democrats have already joined in supporting Harris with donations Sunday or making pledges to donate soon, according to reports from outlets including the New York Times. While not immediately backing Harris, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, who previously called for Biden to step aside, told the Times, “We have hope now. Dem delegates need to pick a swing state winner. Thank you, Joe Biden.”

Money also began to stream in from Silicon Valley, with one bundler saying they managed to put together more than a million dollars for Harris in under 30 minutes, according to the Times. Billionaires Reid Hoffman and Alex Soros also pledged their support.

Many pundits had predicted that Democrats would raise a historic sum if Biden were to drop out of the race, but if Harris is the nominee she will be able to use the war chest raised by Biden. Indeed, ActBlue announced on Sunday that more than $27 million was raised in the five hours after Biden stepped down, with over $46 million raised by the end of the day — the largest fundraising day of the 2024 cycle.

Biden’s decision to step down felt inevitable after a pair of TV interviews meant to mitigate the damage done by his debate performance — one with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos and one with NBC’s Lester Holt — only made things worse. Harris’ fellow California Democrat, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was among those who worked behind the scenes to help Biden find a dignified way out of the race. According to media reports, even former president Barack Obama was involved in these behind-the-scenes efforts.

It was midday Sunday when Biden issued a statement announcing that he was dropping out of the race after only finalizing the decision to step down earlier the same day, according to The New York Times. He did not tell most of his staff until one minute before his announcement went live on social media.

“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden said.

The President promised to make a public address later in the week about his decision.

Shortly after that initial announcement, Biden announced that he was endorsing his vice president. “My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this,” he said.

Harris called Biden’s decision a “selfless and patriotic act,” saying she intends to “earn and win” the nomination. 

Biden’s decision makes Harris the presumptive Democratic nominee, though while the Democratic establishment has largely lined up behind her, she may still face some internal opposition. CNN’s Jake Tapper reported that Senator Joe Manchin is considering re-registering as a Democrat to vie for the nomination. 

Bill and Hillary Clinton said they were “honored” to join Biden in endorsing Harris, while former Democratic candidate for president and current Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said he’ll do “all that I can” to get Harris elected. The majority of the left-wing “Squad” group of congress members, including Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, put their support behind Harris. Even those who had been on Democrats’ wishlist to take over for Biden endorsed Vice President: Governors Gavin Newsom and Josh Shapiro released enthusiastic statements in quick succession. “The best path forward for the Democratic Party is to quickly unite behind Vice President Harris,” Shapiro said. Newsom described her as “Tough. Fearless. Tenacious.”

In perhaps the most pointed sign of how quickly the Hollywood tide turned, “West Wing” creator Aaron Sorkin disavowed an op-ed he’d published in the New York Times only on Sunday morning, pitching Republican Mitt Romney as a Democratic candidate worthy of beating Trump. Hours after Biden stepped aside and endorsed Harris, Sorkin made an about-face.

“I take it all back,” the Oscar-winning “Social Network” screenwriter said. “Harris for America!”

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