Kamala Harris’ campaign proves they didn’t pay Cardi B millions

A senior official with Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign is responding to reports that the campaign paid millions of dollars to high-profile artists like Cardi B and GloRilla to perform. Now the rumors in the campaign are fighting back.

The allegations surfaced amid growing questions about celebrity endorsements and event expenses, with some critics claiming celebrities were paid huge sums to promote the vice presidential candidacy.

Adrienne Elrod, who serves as a senior spokesperson for the Harris campaign, told Deadline the rumors are completely false.

“We have never paid any artists or performers,” Elrod said, firmly denying the accusations. “We never paid that person.”

She clarified that while the campaign does cover “any ancillary expenses for the show,” such as travel expenses for band members or crew, payments are not made directly to the celebrities themselves.

“There are laws that must be followed, and we strictly adhere to them during this event,” she explained.

Elrod cited Federal Election Commission (FEC) rules that require campaigns to pay fair market value for campaign expenses. Under FEC regulations, any services provided must be reimbursed at a fair price, but direct payments to celebrities will be considered an in-kind donation and subject to legal restrictions.

The comments come as other key figures involved in Harris’ campaign issued clarifications over the course of the week. Oprah Winfrey hosted a town hall event for Harris in Michigan, and after it was revealed that her production company, Harpo Productions, was paid $1 million to organize the event, she was forced to resolve the dispute. Winfrey, a longtime supporter of Harris, initially denied she had received any personal payments, saying “that’s not true” when asked by a TMZ photographer. However, she later clarified on Instagram that while she didn’t receive any fees, her production company was paid to host the event.

“My production company, Harpo, was asked to bring in set design, lighting, cameras, microphones, crew, producers and all the other necessary items… Frankly, $1 million is not a lot of money to me,” Winver said. Rui wrote.

Despite the controversy surrounding the $1 million payment to Winfrey’s company, Elrod and the campaign maintain that their celebrity endorsements complied with campaign finance laws. “We respect all the scammers involved and we follow the rules,” Elrod said, defending the legality of their activities.

Meanwhile, Cardi B, who caused a stir by speaking on Harris’ behalf at a rally in Wisconsin, also addressed rumors that she was hired to support the vice president. The rapper vehemently denied the claims in a fiery post on X (formerly Twitter). “I didn’t get paid a dollar, that was my three dollars!! In fact, I paid out of pocket for the glamor and the trip because that’s where I wanted to be,” she wrote. “Come on, girl, you know full well I’ll argue with you about politics for free.”

See Cardi’s post below.