For Bono, U2 concerts are for rock fans, not political friends

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For Bono, U2 concerts are for rock fans, not political friends

Singer distances himself from move by candidates to use sold-out shows as fundraisers

By PATRICK D. HEALY

New York Times

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton may be holding a $2,500-a-person fundraiser at a U2 concert on Wednesday, and her husband may be best buds with Bono, but do not assume that the band's political celebrity is endorsing New York's celebrity politician.

A close associate of Bono's took the unusual step this week of disassociating the band from a trend in Washington: candidates using access to sold-out concerts to woo major donors.

The move came after a Web site, NewsMax.com, reported that U2 was "teaming up" with another senator, Rick Santorum, R-Pa., for a thousand-dollar-a-seat concert in Philadelphia on Sunday. Santorum's office responded that the story was incorrect: The senator has bought only 66 seats, which supporters can repurchase for the higher price.

Yet erroneous reports continued on the Internet and cable television, prompting an advocacy group that was founded by Bono and others — Debt AIDS Trade Africa — to release a statement distancing the performers from these fundraising events.

"If any political fundraising events take place at a U2 concert, it is without the involvement or knowledge of DATA, U2 or Bono," Jamie Drummond, executive director of DATA, said in the statement. "U2 concerts are categorically not fundraisers for any politician; they are rock concerts for U2 fans."

The original NewsMax article drew attention in part because Santorum is a conservative Republican facing a tough fight for re-election next year, and he and the politically progressive singer might not seem a natural fit. But Bono has worked with many conservatives, including former Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., and Santorum, on efforts to prevent the global spread of HIV, according to a Santorum spokesman.

Officials with Clinton's campaign declined to comment. Requests to interview Bono were not granted. A spokesman for DATA, Christopher Lagan, said he did not know if the group's statement was Bono's idea.

The statement has stirred conversations in some circles because Bono has mixed politics and celebrity himself in hopes of influencing Africa policy.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/3397452