Kathy Griffin Wears Donald Trump Mask in First Public Appearance Since Controversy

Kathy Griffin is doubling down on her Donald Trump mask controversy that placed her on the receiving end of heavy backlash earlier this year. The 56-year-old comedienne was the headliner for the annual Aid for AIDS fundraiser Best in Drag show and walked on stage holding up her middle fingers while wearing a mask of the President.

On Saturday night, Griffin made her return to comedy at the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Los Angeles. When the host of the event, Patrick Rush, announced her name, Griffin began by saying, “Hello gays! It’s me, Kathy Griffin, a genuine comedy fugitive.”

She then continued by speaking about the aftermath of the initial Trump mask controversy in which she was photographed holding a bloody, severed head in the resemblance of the former Apprentice star.

“I’m going to spill the f—ing tea,” she said, according to THR. “I was part of an international scandal, under federal investigation for two months, my sister died, my dog died and my mother turned on me. My mother took [Fox News host] Sean Hannity’s side. She was a little drunk. She goes, ‘Kathleen, I was watching my Fox News and do you know not one of those guys took your side. Not once.’ I said, ‘Yes.’ I got letters from them saying they wanted to shoot me in my c–t.”

Even though she initially made reference to her beef with the President, Griffin actually spent the majority of her time on stage taking shots at Harvey Weinstein, Billy Bush and the “deplorables” who sent her death threats and hate mail this past summer.

Weinstein, who has been at the center of a sexual abuse scandal, is someone that Griffin wasn’t afraid to slam in her speech.

“The Weinstein thing is just f–ing unbelievable but I’m not afraid to say anything because I don’t appear in movies ever and no one will ever put me in one,” she said. “That guy seems to be what’s called a rapist. I’m using it as a broad term. There’s a lot of them and they are everywhere. So it’s time we started to f–ing look out for each other because this s–t has been going on for way too long.”

Griffin then blasted Billy Bush, who was embroiled in the Hollywood Access scandal in which Trump was caught on a hot mic about making inappropriate sexual advances towards him.

“Would you like to hear my consolation note from none other than Billy F—ing Bush?” she asked. “Dear Kathy, I will skip my analysis of the moment and go to what matters…’What’s happening here is that there’s no time for debate. Action goes straight into consequence,’ and then [Bush] goes in parentheses, ‘Even an off-the-cuff conversation 12 years ago.’… Billy Bush is trying to be nice; I get it. I don’t want to be in your club.”