Lauren Boebert’s Barbra Streisand and Ryan Reynolds Blame Game Signal Renewed GOP Attacks on Hollywood in 2024

When Lauren Boebert blamed Hollywood for forcing her to change districts in Colorado during her re-election campaign, she was just the latest in a long line of Republicans to target the industry and its lopsided support for the left.

Not a cycle goes by without a Republican candidate attacking Hollywood, with a donor pool that overwhelmingly supports the Democrats.

When Boebert spoke to Steve Bannon for his podcast last weekend, he blamed “Hollywood elites trying to buy my current district.” “The money doesn’t just come from Aspen,” she said. “It’s from Hollywood. “When Barbra Streisand comes in and donates to the Democrats, when Ryan Reynolds comes in and donates to the Democrats, it shows that Hollywood is trying to force its way into Congress.

Boebert was referring to Adam Frisch, the former Aspen city councilman who would have been her likely Democratic opponent in the general election. Frisch, who narrowly defeated Boebert in the 2022 midterm elections, had raised about $8 million at the end of September, far more than Boebert.

But last week, Boebert announced she would switch districts, from Colorado’s 3rd to Colorado’s 4th, apparently thinking she would have a better chance in an area that leans more Republican.

Boebert told Bannon that redistricting would “stop the money, the dark money, coming into our district to try to buy this seat” because she was a key Democratic target.

Frisch has received donations from Streisand and Reynolds, who each donated $1,000 last spring, as well as other Hollywood names such as Rob Reiner, Tony Shaloub and Richard Kind. But according to the Center for Responsive Politics, as of Sept. 30, Frisch brought in a total of $75,583 from showbiz sources – a substantial amount, but still only a fraction of his total income. (His campaign did not immediately respond seeking comment.)

However, Boebert’s attack on her opponent for being funded by “Hollywood elites” is actually a fairly common tactic among Republicans, going back many, many cycles and receiving varying levels of response.

First, it attracts media attention, more than other sectors – and here we are, guilty as charged. It also plays a direct role in the culture wars: Boebert’s entire identity is woven into it us against them especially among rural voters.

While the fight against the “elite” may have done well to maximize support in the rural areas of the 3rd District over wealthy and prominent Aspen, Boebert stands to win the primary in her new district, where she has a large district, which faces an entirely different challenge. challenge. field of other Republican candidates.

As much as she complains about the influence of outside money, Boebert has by no means limited herself to hometown donors, receiving donations from celebrities outside the District such as Jenny Craig (in the 2020 cycle) and Liberty Media’s John Malone, listed with a Florida address, donated the maximum amount of $6,600 to her campaign last year.

In other words, they are elites of a different kind, but in Boebert’s latest challenge to retain a congressional seat against other Republican contenders, she appears to be hoping that a few swipes at Hollywood will help her stand out from the crowd. stand.