Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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Los Angeles Times - October 19, 2005
Geoff Boucher
U2 has posted a statement on its website distancing the group from the practice of politicians raising cash by inviting campaign donors to attend the band's shows in private suites. The practice has crossed the political aisle; Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Rick Santorum, R-Pa., have scheduled suite parties on U2's current hot-ticket Vertigo tour which makes a Miami stop on Nov. 13 and 14.
The statement seems intended to wave off any appearance of partisanship by DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa), a group closely linked to U2 lead singer Bono that is working toward African poverty relief. The statement was attributed to Jamie Drummond, executive director of DATA.
``Throughout the U2 tour, politicians from both sides have been organizing fundraisers at the venues or around specific shows. Neither DATA or Bono are involved in these and they cannot be controlled. The U2 concerts are categorically not fundraisers for any politician -- they are rock concerts for U2 fans.''
Santorum's press secretary, Robert Traynham, told The Associated Press last week that the decision by the Senate's third-ranking Republican to hold a fundraiser during a Philadelphia show Sunday was based on his ``deep respect and admiration for Bono and their work together over the last few years to fight the global spread of HIV-AIDS.''
Clinton expects 18 supporters, willing to pay $2,500 each to benefit Democrats, to join her at a U2 concert at the MCI Center tonight in Washington, D.C. The Clintons are friends with Bono. A campaign spokesman said Friday that there would be no official comment.
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took his turn at the rock 'n' roll trough as well. When the Rolling Stones kicked off their current tour in Boston, California's chief executive flew east to attend the show with a group of donors. He playfully was mocked from the stage when Mick Jagger said the politician had been ''out front scalping tickets and selling T-shirts'' before the show. The Stones tour has upcoming California stops, but a spokesman for Schwarzenegger said Friday that the governor has no more fundraising concert visits scheduled at this time.
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