What the Press Said About the Candidates\' Pre-Super Tuesday L.A. Blitz

Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton at the Kodak Theatre
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton at the Kodak Theatre
Photo: Emmanuel Dun/Getty Images
After much ado, Super Tuesday has at last descended upon the country. Tonight, supporters of Barack Obama's campaign will gather at 8:30 at the Avalon to watch the Democratic primary results, LAist will host its first-ever public event in the form of a results-viewing party at Seven Grand, and patrons at Barney's Beanery locations around town will be encouraged to show their support for candidates by choosing their beer from particular spigots. (To each his own showing of political activism.)

With so much significance placed on California and its delegates, the front-running candidates campaigned hard in the region in recent days at fund-raisers and debates, most significantly at last week's Democratic biggie at the Kodak Theatre. Here’s what the press had to say about the local events.The Press-Telegram described the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, the venue for the Republican debate, and Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre, the venue for the Democratic debate, as perfect stages for the parties’ differing images. The Long Beach pub said the locales highlighted “the culture of celebrity reflected in both campaigns.”

The Washington Post classified the predebate spectacle outside the Kodak as a worthy rival to Oscar night. The paper further said the debate “was considered one of the hottest tickets in town.”

Broadcasting & Cable
reported that CNN’s postdebate party at the Roosevelt hotel was a magnet for celebrities such as Quentin Tarantino, Richard Schiff, Stevie Wonder, and Amy Brenneman. And Hollywood Elsewhere wrote that the party “was relaxing and not overly crowded,” reporting that guests dined on burgers, crab cakes, and quesadillas around the property’s pool while heaters provided warmth.

The New York Observer noted that Hillary Clinton’s postdebate fund-raiser at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel cost $500 per person for the general reception and $2,300 per person for the V.I.P. reception. One source identified the mood of the event as “strong and upbeat.”

And Variety reported on a fund-raiser for John McCain at the home of MGM chief Harry Sloan, noting that Jerry Bruckheimer, Bruce Ramer, Tim Allen, Kelsey Grammer, and Jon Voight were among the group of 300 supporters. The trade added that McCain spoke “atop a piece of see-through plexiglass that covered a jacuzzi.”
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