Trump suggests legal action against Beyoncé for suspected Harris endorsement payment
In a series of posts on Truth Social, former U.S. President Donald Trump made unverified claims about the Democratic Party paying celebrities, including Beyoncé and Oprah Winfrey, for endorsements during the 2020 presidential election.
One such claim was that Beyoncé received $11 million for her endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign. However, there is no evidence to support this claim, and the Federal Election Commission has no record of such a payment.
The original rumour of a $10 million payment to Beyoncé for her endorsement of Harris spread on social media shortly after her October 2020 appearance with Harris at a rally in Houston, Texas. However, the Harris campaign denied the rumour, and during her appearance, Beyoncé did not mention receiving any payment for her endorsement.
Beyoncé made her endorsement of Harris official at the rally, describing Harris' presidential bid as "a new song" and stating, "Your freedom is your God-given right, your human right."
Trump suggested that Harris and those who received endorsement money broke the law and should be prosecuted. He called for a "major investigation" into Harris' celebrity endorsements in a May Truth Social post.
USA TODAY reached out to a representative for Beyoncé for comment, but no response was received at the time of publication. Oprah Winfrey also stated that she was not paid a 'personal fee' for her participation in a Kamala Harris rally.
Tina Knowles, Beyoncé's mother, refuted the $10 million rumour on Instagram, stating that Beyoncé paid for her own flights for her and her team.
Trump's claims about the endorsement payments are unverified, and there is no evidence to support the allegations that the Democratic Party paid celebrities for their endorsements during the 2020 presidential election.
