Ellen DeGeneres’ attempt to put an end to the backlash surrounding her recent appearance with former President George W. Bush during the Dallas Cowboys’ game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday is only further aggravating social media. After controversy sparked online over the outing, many citing the talk show host’s landmark decision to come out as gay in 1997 and Bush’s record of anti-LGBTQ+ policies, DeGeneres explained on Tuesday that she was living by her famous words of “be kind to one another.”
“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 that we’ve forgotten that we’re all different,” she explained. “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.”
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“But just because I don’t agree with someone on everything doesn’t mean I’m not gonna be friends with them,” DeGeneres continued. “When I say ‘be kind to one another,’ I don’t mean only the people that think the same way you do. I mean be kind to everyone. It doesn’t matter.”
Her comments did little to quell the backlash, with the talk surrounding the outing continuing well into Tuesday morning, with many pointing to the deaths caused a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that happened during his term.
“I’m friends with George Bush,” boasts Ellen, saying it’s good to have friends with different views
But this isn’t a matter of views; it’s a matter of *crimes*. Bush is a war criminal with the blood of 1 million Iraqis on his hands. He should be in prisonhttps://t.co/IJvbvuhQQ0
— Ben Norton (@BenjaminNorton) October 8, 2019
Here’s the thing, Ellen, George W. Bush is a war criminal who is responsible for death on a cataclysmic scale. It’s not a matter of being friends with people with different beliefs—we all have those friends—it’s about having a little perspective on the damage he’s done. https://t.co/7FJTqPEfb8
— Walker Bragman (@WalkerBragman) October 8, 2019
This man’s administration oversaw the systematic torture and abuse of indefinitely detained brown individuals. He destabilized an entire region of the world and men, women, and children are still dying for his arrogance. He eroded civil liberties in ways we may never reverse.
— Walker Bragman (@WalkerBragman) October 8, 2019
there’s a difference. it’s not just “i’m friends with someone who has different views than me”. It is in fact “i’m friends with someone who has lobbied against gay rights, who has lobbied for Kavanaugh, who is a warmonger who killed thousands in his war on ‘terror’, etc etc”
— Evan Shreffler (@shreff21) October 8, 2019
Bush opposed same-sex marriage. During his 2004 reelection campaign, he called for an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would ban same-sex marriage in the United States but allow for the possibility of civil unions on the state level.
What he thinks of your marriage.
— Zombie Madrox (@ChuckMadrox) October 8, 2019
It wasn’t all negative responses, though, with many applauding the talk show host for speaking out and handling the situation “so beautifully.”
This is so wholesome it actually made me tear up.
I love so many people in my life with whom I disagree in some way or another, and it would break my heart if we couldn’t be friends or family because of our differences.
Thank you, Ellen. https://t.co/1ytgz9Oxik
— Lauren Chen (@TheLaurenChen) October 8, 2019
Another person tweeted that DeGeneres’ response was “great” because she “not only talked about her day with George W. Bush, but embraced it and turned it into a great lesson for everyone out there. Kudos to Ellen for taking the time to show everyone how it’s done.”
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