Oprah Winfrey has denied reports that she was paid $1 million to assist Vice President Kamala Harris by hosting a star-studded town hall event for her in September.
While walking to her car after a workout in Santa Barbara, Oprah was approached by a TMZ reporter who asked her about various hot topics.
‘Not true’ she said when asked about the alleged payment. ‘I was paid nothing. Ever.’
The talk show legend initially made it clear she didn’t want to discuss President-elect Trump’s landslide victory: ‘I’m not talking about the election,’ she demurred.
As Oprah climbed into her SUV, a reporter asked if she thought Prince Harry would lose his visa if Trump became president. In response, she simply closed the door.
On Sunday, the Washington Examiner reported that Oprah’s Harpo Productions had received $1 million from Kamala Harris’ campaign on October 15, following Oprah’s hosting of a star-studded town hall event.
The Harris campaign spent a total of $1.2 billion on the race, while Trump’s campaign spent $750 million, according to a Financial Times analysis. However, some believe Harris’s actual spending may have been even higher.
Additionally, Harris’s campaign reportedly allocated six figures to build the set for her October appearance on the popular podcast Call Her Daddy, where she had a conversation with host Alex Cooper.
The set was designed to replicate Cooper’s actual set in Los Angeles but was filmed inside a hotel room in Washington, DC.
The Harris campaign, affiliated PACs, and the Democratic National Committee collectively raised over $2.3 billion in political contributions.
After raising nearly $4.2 billion, they spent a combined $3.5 billion on the presidential race, making it the most expensive election in history, according to the analysis.
Trump’s team, affiliated PACs, and the Republican National Committee raised $1.8 billion. Despite spending less, Trump outperformed Harris in both the electoral and popular votes, a feat not achieved by the GOP in decades.
The Examiner also delved into how the Harris campaign burned through its substantial budget, including the podcast appearance.
The campaign and its affiliates spent over $654 million from July to Election Day, while Trump spent $378 million—57% less than Harris.
One vendor, Village Marketing Agency, was paid over $3.9 million to recruit social media influencers to boost Harris’ online presence.
Event production, such as the podcast appearance, was a significant expenditure for the Harris campaign, which also hosted high-profile figures like Lady Gaga and Katy Perry on the eve of the election.
Federal filings show that the campaign paid over $15 million to companies for event production services.
A clearer picture of their actual spending will emerge once the Federal Election Commission releases full reports from candidates within 30 days.
As Democrats continue to regroup after their defeat to Trump earlier this week, teams from both Biden and Harris are pointing fingers at each other for wasting campaign funds.
White House staff and campaign workers are engaged in a relentless blame game, with accusations flying over whether the president or vice president mishandled the campaign.
The fallout from their campaign has been disastrous, and to make matters worse, reports from Politico suggest the operation is in debt, to the tune of $20 million.
Biden’s staff has criticized Harris for running a poor, three-month campaign and wasting millions of dollars from their top donors.
‘How did you spend $1 billion and not win? What the f***?’ said a former Biden staffer infuriated by the Harris team excuses.
MailOnline has contacted the Harris campaign for comment.