{"id":2330150,"date":"2024-08-23T16:02:01","date_gmt":"2024-08-23T20:02:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/london-breeds-rivals-fume-over-attendance-at-lavish-dnc-donor-party-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-08-23T16:07:07","modified_gmt":"2024-08-23T20:07:07","slug":"london-breeds-rivals-fume-over-attendance-at-lavish-dnc-donor-party-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/london-breeds-rivals-fume-over-attendance-at-lavish-dnc-donor-party-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"London Breed\u2019s rivals fume over attendance at lavish DNC donor party &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flondon-breeds-rivals-fume-over-attendance-at-lavish-dnc-donor-party-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2330150&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>San\u200c Francisco Mayor\u200c London Breed is facing criticism from\u2062 her political opponents over her involvement in a\u200c lavish donor party during the Democratic National Convention. The event, \u200dheld at Tao nightclub in Chicago, was financed by\u2064 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-megadonors-puzzled-to-receive-stimulus-checks\/\" title=\"GOP Megadonors Puzzled To Receive Stimulus Checks\">billionaire donor<\/a> Chris Larsen, who has\u2063 heavily funded Breed&#8217;s reelection campaign. Critics \u200ballege that\u2062 the \u200dparty crossed \u2062ethical boundaries, given Larsen&#8217;s financial ties to Breed\u2019s campaign. The exclusive, invitation-only celebration featured \u2063luxury food and drinks for around 500 \u2064attendees, including a\u200b performance by The Killers, and was\u2064 framed as a tribute not only \u2064to Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris but \u2064also to San Francisco.<\/p>\n<p>During the party, Breed addressed the challenges facing the city, arguing against negative \u200bportrayals \u200cby Republicans. However, her opponents, including Mark Farrell\u2063 and\u2063 Aaron Peskin, have raised concerns\u200d about the appropriateness of her\u2063 interactions with Larsen and the potential for campaign strategy discussions, given his significant\u200c contributions to her campaign committee. While Breed&#8217;s spokesperson defended her \u200dactions, her rivals continue \u200cto question the ethical implications amidst her reelection\u2063 battle.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">London Breed&rsquo;s rivals fume over attendance at lavish DNC donor party<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1735587\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>San Francisco Mayor <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/london-breed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Democratic National Convention\">London Breed&rsquo;s <\/a>political&nbsp;rivals are claiming that a lavish, A-list party she helped throw at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/democratic-national-convention\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Democratic National Convention\">Democratic National Convention<\/a> this week crossed ethical lines because it was paid for by a billionaire donor to her campaign.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Ripple co-founder <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/profile\/chris-larsen\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Chris Larsen\">Chris Larsen<\/a> footed the bill for party participants at <a href=\"https:\/\/taogroup.com\/venues\/tao-asian-bistro-chicago\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Chris Larsen\">Tao nightclub<\/a> in Chicago&rsquo;s swanky River North neighborhood. He paid for the open bar, wagyu beef sliders, all-you-can-eat sushi, and more. The over-the-top, 500-person, invitation-only event was one of the hottest tickets in town during the four-day Democratic convention and featured a performance by The Killers.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Mayor London Breed watches during the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo\/Erin Hooley)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The bash was billed not only as a party for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/kamala-harris\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris\">Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris<\/a> but also a salute to San Francisco.<\/p>\n<p>Breed is in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/virginians-shout-lets-go-brandon-and-display-build-crack-better-sign-as-joe-biden-visits-culpeper\/\" title=\"Virginians Shout &#039;Let&#039;s Go Brandon&#039; and Display &#039;Build Crack Better&#039; Sign as Joe Biden Visits Culpeper\">tough reelection fight<\/a> for mayor. She took <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/3131596\/kamala-harris-dnc-speech-san-francisco-spotlight\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"center stage\">center stage<\/a> at the party and spoke about a city that&rsquo;s been battered by homelessness, retail theft, and crime.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Tonight is really a time to talk about not just Kamala Harris but to talk about everything that San Francisco represents,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It is so critical that we talk about the truth about San Francisco because Republicans are trying to turn San Francisco into something it is not. They&rsquo;re trying to turn San Francisco into a bad word.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>While her intentions may have been good, other candidates in the race have accused Breed of ethics violations because Larsen is one of the mayor&rsquo;s biggest financial backers. Larsen dropped $400,000 on a committee to back Breed&rsquo;s reelection bid, Forward Action SF, Supporting London Breed for Mayor 2024.<\/p>\n<p>While independent campaign committees can raise enormous amounts of money for a campaign without crossing a line because they are purportedly independent of the candidates themselves, candidate committees can only raise money in $500 increments. Independent committees are also banned by law from talking to candidates about strategy. <\/p>\n<p>In Breed&rsquo;s case, she was caught talking to Larsen at length during the party at Tao, though no one knows exactly what the&nbsp;t&ecirc;te-&agrave;-t&ecirc;te was about.<\/p>\n<p>That still hasn&rsquo;t stopped her rival, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2854133\/mark-farrell-san-francisco-mayor-2024-race-london-breed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Mark&nbsp;Farrell\">Mark&nbsp;Farrell<\/a>, from calling foul.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">One-time interim San Francisco Mayor Mark Farrell speaks to reporters after being sworn into office on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, at City Hall. (AP Photo\/Joel Angel Juarez)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&ldquo;It should raise eyebrows that Mayor Breed attended a lavish party hosted by and spent hours in a VIP only room talking all night with Chris Larsen, who is the largest contributor to her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/soros-donates-1-million-to-stacey-abrams-campaign\/\" title=\"Soros Donates  Million to Stacey Abrams Campaign\">independent expenditure committee<\/a>,&rdquo; Farrell campaign manager Jade Tu said in a statement. &ldquo;How do voters know and trust that they didn&rsquo;t talk about her campaign or strategy at all?&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Breed spokesman Joe Arellano pushed back on the accusation.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Instead of promoting our city as a wonderful place, Mark Farrell&rsquo;s entire campaign is centered on his Doom Loop talking points tearing down San Francisco for his own benefit,&rdquo; Arellano said.<\/p>\n<p>Aaron Peskin, another mayoral candidate, also took issue with Breed for appearing onstage at Larsen&rsquo;s event. Peskin also criticized her for not owning up to her role in creating the negative narrative people have of San Francisco.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin speaks during a board meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in San Francisco. (AP Photo\/Jeff Chiu)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&ldquo;At the DNC, Breed said that &lsquo;Republicans are trying to turn San Francisco into a bad word,&rsquo;&rdquo; Peskin said in a statement. &ldquo;She should look in the mirror and remember that she already did Republicans&rsquo; work for them. It was Breed who talked about &lsquo;all the bulls&ndash;t that has destroyed our city.&rsquo; It was Breed who talked about the &lsquo;reign of criminals&rsquo; and said &lsquo;Downtown is never coming back.&#8217;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/san-francisco\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER \">CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Paul Melbostad, a former chairman of the San Francisco Ethics Commission, <a href=\"https:\/\/sfstandard.com\/2024\/08\/22\/breed-rival-says-her-swanky-crypto-funded-dnc-party-crossed-ethical-lines\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"told the\">told the<\/a> <em>San Francisco Standard <\/em>that the Chicago party did not cross the line, provided Breed and Larsen did not discuss campaign expenditures.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It was hard to believe there was no discussion between him and London Breed or an agent of her campaign about the benefit of attending this event,&rdquo; Melbostad said. Still, despite any suspicions, there is no evidence such a discussion took place.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1735587\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1735587\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>San Francisco Mayor London Breed&#8217;s political opponents are expressing outrage over her participation in an extravagant party she co-hosted at the Democratic National Convention, arguing that it raised ethical concerns since it was funded by a billionaire donor to her campaign. Chris Larsen, co-founder of Ripple, covered the costs for attendees at Tao nightclub in Chicago&#8217;s upscale River North area, including an open bar and gourmet food. The exclusive event, which hosted around 500 guests and featured a performance by The Killers, was one of the most sought-after invitations during the four-day convention. It was promoted as both a celebration for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and a tribute to San Francisco.<\/p>\n<p>Amidst her challenging reelection campaign for mayor, Breed took the opportunity to address issues facing San Francisco such as homelessness and crime. She emphasized the importance of accurately representing San Francisco against negative portrayals from Republicans.<\/p>\n<p>However, other candidates have accused Breed of ethical misconduct due to Larsen being one of her major financial supporters; he contributed $400,000 to an independent committee backing her reelection bid. While independent committees can raise significant funds without direct coordination with candidates\u2014who are limited to $500 contributions\u2014they are legally prohibited from discussing strategy with candidates.<\/p>\n<p>During the party at Tao, Breed was seen conversing extensively with Larsen; although details about their discussion remain unclear, this has led rival Mark Farrell to question its appropriateness. Farrell\u2019s campaign manager stated that voters should be concerned about whether they discussed campaign matters.<\/p>\n<p>Breed&#8217;s spokesperson defended her actions by criticizing Farrell\u2019s campaign focus on negative narratives about San Francisco instead of promoting its positive aspects. Another candidate in the race, Aaron Peskin, also criticized Breed for appearing on stage at Larsen\u2019s event and suggested she should acknowledge her role in perpetuating negative perceptions about the city.<\/p>\n<p>Paul Melbostad, former chairman of the San Francisco Ethics Commission, commented that while there may be suspicions regarding discussions between Breed and Larsen during the event\u2014if they did not discuss campaign finances\u2014it likely did not violate any rules. Nonetheless, there is no concrete evidence indicating such discussions occurred<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2646,"featured_media":2330151,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/londonbreeddnc.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[7705,39118,36674],"class_list":["post-2330150","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-dnc","tag-donor-party","tag-london-breed"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/londonbreeddnc.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2330150","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2646"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2330150"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2330150\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2330151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2330150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2330150"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2330150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}