Ellen DeGeneres has responded to the backlash she received after she was pictured sitting next to George W. Bush at the Dallas Cowboys game on Sunday, October 6.
DeGeneres, 61, was at the game with her wife Portia de Rossi and sitting beside them was former US president George W. Bush and his wife Laura Bush. This led to criticisms as people questioned why a “gay Hollywood liberal” was sitting next to a “conservative Republican president”.
Ellen addressed this on her show. She explained that she and wife Portia had been invited to the game by Charlotte Jones, daughter of the Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones.
She added: “During the game, they showed a shot of me and George laughing together, and so people were upset.
“They thought, why is a gay Hollywood liberal sitting next to a conservative Republican president.”
She jokingly added that they “didn’t even notice I’m holding the brand-new iPhone 11.”
She continued: “But a lot of people were mad, and they did what people do when they’re mad: they tweet.”
Explaining her reason for sitting next to Bush, who was a guest on her talk show in 2017, Ellen said: “Here’s the thing. I’m friends with George Bush. In fact, I’m friends with a lot of people who don’t share the same beliefs that I have.
“We’re all different, and I think we’ve forgotten that that’s okay that we’re all different. For instance, I wish people wouldn’t wear fur. I don’t like it, but I’m friends with people who wear fur. And I’m friends with people who are furry, as a matter of fact. I have friends who should tweeze more,” she joked.
“But just because I don’t agree with someone on everything doesn’t mean that I’m not going to be friends with them,” she said. “When I say, ‘be kind to one another,’ I don’t only mean the people that think the same way that you do. I mean be kind to everyone.”
“Even people who are already playing Christmas music — I mean seriously, there’s no excuse for that, but I’m kind to them,” she joked.
Yes, that was me at the Cowboys game with George W. Bush over the weekend. Here’s the whole story. pic.twitter.com/AYiwY5gTIS
— Ellen DeGeneres (@EllenDeGeneres) October 8, 2019
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