More than 100 Donald Trump supporters squeezed onto a Pacific Heights street corner Thursday night as the former president arrived in the ritzy San Francisco neighborhood for a campaign fundraiser just two blocks away.
The rally at Divisadero Street and Pacific Avenue brought out familiar faces from a large demonstration earlier in the day at Marina Green, plus a small group of counter-protesters. A Trump supporter and counter-protester got into a brief confrontation around 8 p.m., but only words were exchanged.
“Trump for prison!” yelled the counter-protester, who was wearing a T-shirt and waving a flag with the same message.
The paltry turnout of anti-Trump protesters paled in comparison to the number of people who came out for Trump, who at times led chants, “USA, USA, USA,” and “We want Trump.”
The president’s motorcade did not make an appearance at the rally, which was set up outside a multi-block security perimeter around tech entrepreneur David Sacks’ house, where the fundraiser was being held. Tickets for the dinner ranged from $50,000 to $500,000.
Harmeet Dhillon, a Republican Party official and attorney who represented Trump in an unsuccessful defamation case filed by Stormy Daniels, told The Standard that the dinner raised $12 million for the former president’s campaign.
Dhillon said both longtime Republican donors and people in the tech industry who had never supported Trump before attended the fundraiser. She said Sens. Bill Hagerty and J.D. Vance, as well as crypto entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, were among those in attendance.
The dinner included “little hamburgers with American flags in them” plus crab amuse-bouche, cheese and crackers, and a dessert display, Dhillon said.
The event came a day after Vice President Kamala Harris visited the Mission for a fundraiser hosted by Manny Yekutiel, owner of Manny’s community gathering space and co-founder of the Civic Joy Fund.
While Trump’s supporters stood with flags and phones in hand, another person sat on the sidewalk across the street, painting the rally in front of him. The painter, who declined to be identified, said it was his way of “documenting” the event.
“These people think Trump is here for them, but he’s here for these rich people,” the painter said.
| Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
