Reese Witherspoon Deletes Her Support of Ellen DeGeneres' George W. Bush Speech

Reese Witherspoon is quietly walking back some of her public support for Ellen DeGeneres as the [...]

Reese Witherspoon is quietly walking back some of her public support for Ellen DeGeneres as the talk show host deals with the backlash from her friendship with former President George W. Bush. Many who saw the duo sitting beside one another at a Cowboys game over the weekend were shocked to see the comedian, who is gay, being friends with a man whose time in office was filled with anti-LGBT policies and the Iraq War, but DeGeneres has since defended having a relationship with someone who doesn't "share the same beliefs" as her.

Witherspoon also dove into the fray, tweeting Tuesday alongside a segment of DeGeneres' address on the matter, "Thank you for this important reminder, Ellen!" but was bombarded by messages telling her that cozying up to a "war criminal" and "mass murderer" isn't a show of kindness, but "rich elitists" sticking together.

It seems to have been a little too much for the Big Little Lies actress, who as of Thursday had deleted her support of DeGeneres altogether.

Despite all the backlash, the comedian has stood by her friendship with the former president, saying during Tuesday's episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, "During the game, they showed a shot of George and me laughing together, so people were upset. They thought, 'Why is a gay Hollywood liberal sitting next to a conservative Republican president?' ... But a lot of people were mad, and they did what people do when they're mad: They tweet."

She continued, "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. 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."

"But just because I don't agree with someone on everything doesn't mean I'm not gonna be friends with them," DeGeneres added. "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."

Photo credit: Jason Merritt/TERM / Staff, Getty

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