Sen. Ted Cruz will shake the Washington money tree later this month, attending a fundraiser for his newly launched presidential campaign at the home of an old colleague, Charles Cooper.
Guests will shell out $1,500 to attend a 6 p.m. VIP reception on April 29, and $500 to get into the “general” event later in the evening, according to an invitation obtained by CNN on Wednesday. The invite lists the D.C. home of Charles and Debra Cooper as a condo in the Penn Quarter neighborhood.
Charles Cooper confirmed the April fundraiser in an email to CNN. A Cruz spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.
Cooper is a prominent attorney who served as assistant attorney general for the Office of Legal Counsel under President Ronald Reagan and has argued before the Supreme Court. Cruz worked at Cooper’s firm, Cooper & Kirk, from 1997 to 1999 (it was previously called Cooper, Carvin & Rosenthal), and Federal Election Commission records show that Cooper has previously donated to Cruz’s Senate campaign.
Several years ago, Cooper defended in court California’s so-called “Proposition 8” referendum, which put a ban on same-sex marriages in the state. But he is said to have learned while arguing this case that his step-daughter was gay, and has since said that his views on same-sex marriage were evolving.
Cruz weighed in on the sensitive issue last week, commenting on Indiana’s highly controversial “religious freedom” law that critics warned, in its original form, would let companies discriminate against gay customers.
Cruz scolded the business community for getting dragged into the heated debate.
“I think it is unfortunate that large companies today are listening to the extreme left wing agenda that is driven by an aggressive gay marriage agenda,” Cruz said in Iowa.
Cruz became the first candidate to launch a bid for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination in March.