TV star Ellen DeGeneres shared a message of unity after being spotted Sunday at the Dallas Cowboys game with former President George W. Bush.
DeGeneres, 61, addressed the football game appearance and defended her decision to spend time with the former president in a video published Monday night by The Ellen Show.
“Here’s the thing, I’m friends with George Bush,” DeGeneres said. “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 that’s okay that we’re all different.” (RELATED: Vox Writer Mad That ‘Ellen’ Producer Had A Reasonable Conversation About Guns With Dana Loesch)
A representative for the former president responded to DeGeneres’ comments, saying the former president “enjoyed” spending time with DeGeneres and De Rossi, according to Fox News.
“President and Mrs. Bush really enjoyed being with Ellen and Portia (de Rossi) and appreciated Ellen’s comments about respecting one another,” Freddy Ford, a representative for Bush, said. “They respect her.”
The defense comes days after the appearance and followed outrage from fans and journalists on Twitter.
“I don’t care how nice of a guy George W Bush is,” journalist Aaron Rupar tweeted. “He was one of our worst presidents and left our country and world in bad shape. The mess he helped create we’re still trying to dig out of. This is a bad look for @TheEllenShow.”
“‘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*,” journalist Ben Norton added. “Bush is a war criminal with the blood of 1 million Iraqis on his hands. He should be in prison.”
DeGeneres decided to focus on one positive tweet she came across in all the hate.
HAHAHA Ellen and George Bush together makes me have faith in America again https://t.co/LMWYhwVy10
— Matt ???? (@Matthew_Oooo) October 7, 2019
“Ellen and George Bush together makes me have faith in America again,” the user tweeted.