Harris backers praise Lina Khan at tech-focused fundraiser

Some Vice President Harris backers praised Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan at a tech-focused San Francisco fundraiser on Saturday headlined by former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). 

The reception, dubbed, “Little Tech for Harris,” was hosted by Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman, Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan and the CEO of enterprise cloud company Box, Aaron Levie.

During the event, some tech executives, including Stoppelman, applauded Khan, who has led the Biden administration’s antitrust agenda, according to a person who attended the fundraiser. Stoppelman commended the administration’s antitrust efforts, including those of Jonathan Kanter, the head of the Department of Justice’s antitrust division. 

The compliments come as some big Democratic donors have pressured Harris to replace Khan if she wins the presidential race. Meanwhile, progressives have cautioned that Harris would face a “furious” response if the FTC loses the administration’s support for its antitrust pursuits or axes Khan. 

Harris has some ties to the tech community and has raised large chunks of money at fundraisers featuring venture capitalists, tech billionaires and CEOs. The campaign has taken money from LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and Barry Diller, the chair and senior executive of IAC and Expedia Group.

Both Hoffman and Diller have called on Harris to replace Khan. Hoffman, a Democratic mega-donor, has even accused Khan of “waging war on American business.” 

The FTC said it had no comment when reached by The Hill. 

The attendee of the Saturday fundraiser told The Hill that Levie portrayed Harris as a probusiness, protech candidate, while Pelosi complimented the current administration for boosting entrepreneurship and innovation. The former House leader also discussed the importance of immigration reform to bring new highly skilled workers as well as policies such as family leave and affordable child care to support work-life balance at the event.  

The fundraiser, as of Tuesday afternoon, has brought in $500,000, according to a source familiar with the matter. More than 100 attendees were at the event, the source added. 

Pelosi has raised funds for Harris before. A San Francisco reception in August raised more than $12 million for Harris’s campaign.

Her campaign said it raised $361 million in the month of August. Former President Trump’s campaign said last week it brought in $160 million in September.

The Hill has reached out to Harris’s campaign and Pelosi’s office for comment.