Ellen & George W. Bush Controversy

By Mai Gibson – (CitrusTV)

Ellen DeGeneres divided Hollywood this week after she was seen at a Cowboys game with George W. Bush. A few days after the game she appeared on her show to say that she and the former President are friends, despite their differing views.

“I’m friends with a lot of people who don’t share the same beliefs that I have,” DeGeneres said.

Ellen has been met with a slew of varying reactions not just from her fans, but other Hollywood celebrities, too. Blake Shelton, Reese Witherspoon and Kristen Bell are among those who have supported her, emphasizing the notion she made of being kind to everyone.

“When I say be kind to one another, I don’t mean be kind to the people who think the same way you do. I mean…Be Kind to Everyone,” Witherspoon said in a now-deleted tweet.

Meanwhile, Mark Ruffalo and Susan Sarandon are among the critics of DeGeneres. Both challenge that there is a difference between being friends with people who hold different opinions and being friends with a national leader facing accusations of being a war criminal.

“Sorry, until George W. Bush is brought to justice for the crimes of the Iraq War…we can’t even begin to talk about kindness,” Ruffalo tweeted.

DeGeneres also clarified on her show that she did not go to attend the game with Bush. She and her wife were invited to the game by Charlotte Jones, the daughter of the Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. The former President was also invited to attend the game in the same private box, where the two ran into each other.