INQUIRER: The presidential motorcade will head for a 5:30 p.m. big-ticket fund-raiser at the Mount Airy home of David Cohen, Comcast’s executive vice president and a Democratic mahoff. MORE
RELATED: The president is listed as speaking at 8:30 at a private residence in Philadelphia, according to a copy of the president’s schedule, which the source confirmed as the Cohen event. Cohen oversees government affairs for the company. MORE
PREVIOUSLY: The bonds between the cable industry and the world of politics are coming into HD-worthy clarity these days. Comcast Executive Vice President David Cohen will host a fundraising dinner for President Obama with contributors being asked to cough up as much as $100,000 to attend. Cohen spent part of his time last week defending Comcast’s decision to hire Republican FCC Commissioner Meredith Atwell Baker as a lobbyist only months after she approved the Comcast-NBCUniversal merger. MORE
PREVIOUSLY: The proposed merger of Comcast and NBC Universal will be the first big test of the Obama administration’s stance on the hot-button issue of media consolidation. The $30 billion deal between the nation’s largest cable system and a Hollywood juggernaut will create a media behemoth that will undergo strict scrutiny by federal regulators appointed by Obama, who voiced concern about increasing media consolidation on the campaign trail. But the companies under scrutiny in the biggest media deal since the Time Warner-AOL merger are helmed by executives who have been long-time contributors of the Democratic party and have other ties to the administration. Comcast chief executive Brian Roberts made more than $76,000 in political contributions to Democrats since 2006, compared to $13,500 in contributions to Republicans. Comcast vice president and top lobbyist David Cohen made about $180,000 to Democrats in the same period, compared to $12,000 to Republicans, according to OpenSecrets.org. Cohen also helped raise more than $6 million for Obama’s election campaign. During the 2008 election cycle, Comcast’s political action committee raised more than $2.5 million. MORE