Superstar cash finale for Clinton

A vast Hollywood-backed fundraising event for Bill Clinton is planned for later this year, according to a report yesterday. It would memorialise a President who has been much loved by the entertainment industry, but may also mark a watershed in political cash: the taps may be turned off afterwards.

The star-studded occasion would aim to fund Mr Clinton's Presidential Library in Arkansas and wipe out his legal debts, the Internet service The Drudge Report said. The website described the event as "a superstar event which may rival only the Oscars in raw celebrity power."

"It's going to be a marvellous grand finale for the president," an unnamed source told Mr Drudge. "When the dust settles, it could raise more than $5 million! Maybe 10! Maybe 20! We want to give until there's nothing left to give. We don't want him leaving office with debt for simply standing up for what he believed in. And we want only the best possible library to document his achievements."

Hollywood has backed Mr Clinton to the hilt throughout his term in office, providing much-needed cash for the party and the President. But there may be bad news ahead for the Democratic party, The Washington Post reported.

The founders of the DreamWorks studio - David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg and Steven Spielberg - have decided that after this year's election, they will stop fundraising. Al Gore, Mr Clinton's putative Democratic successor, does not command the same loyalty in Hollywood, and funds fatigue has set in.

The trio have raised at least $15 million for Democrats in the past seven years, including $2.8 million at a Beverly Hills event last Saturday. Singers Sarah McLachlan and Sheryl Crow were there, along with chat show host Jay Leno, and actors Kevin Spacey, Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Smits and Antonio Banderas.

"You can only do this for so long," DreamWorks SKG spokesman Andy Spahn told the Post. "The work of raising money is difficult, unpleasant work - you can only ask so many times. We're just going to take a break."

The Republicans have attacked the Democrats' Hollywood fundraising, attacking Mr Clinton and Mr Gore for "putting their hands into the pockets of those who manufacture the movies, music videos and compact discs that twist our children's minds, coarsen their conversation, and darken their thoughts."

But the fact is that has worked. The Democratic National Committee raised more money from January through March than the Republicans, taking in $26 million compared to $24m, the latest figures show.

The Democrats have more than $21 million in the bank - four times the amount they had at this time in the last Presidential election. But the Republicans hope to bring in a massive $15m at a huge gala event to be held next week, with Presidential contender George W Bush the star guest.