Michelle Obama praised disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein as ‘a wonderful human being’ and ‘a good friend’ in 2013 video that has resurfaced after DNC speech
- Michelle Obama praised Harvey Weinstein at the White House in 2013
- She addressed Careers in Film symposium organized by the disgraced producer
- Obama’s remarks were dug out by actor James Woods, a strident Trump fan
- Woods said that Obama’s endorsement of Joe Biden rang hollow
- ‘Beautiful endorsement. She’s a great judge of character,’ he mocked
Donald Trump‘s supporters have dug out a 2013 video of Michelle Obama praising Harvey Weinstein in a bid to discredit her endorsement of Joe Biden.
Oscar-nominated actor James Woods, a strident Trump supporter, tweeted to his 2.5 million followers: ‘Beautiful endorsement tonight. She’s a great judge of character, so please be kind. No trolling. Oh, wait…’
The 73-year-old attached a video from a White House film symposium, in which Obama thanked Weinstein for mentoring film students.
‘He is a wonderful human being, a good friend and just a powerhouse,’ she said.
Michelle Obama’s Monday night endorsement of Joe Biden was mocked by clips of Weinstein
Actor James Woods mockingly tweeted: ‘Beautiful endorsement tonight’
Weinstein and his team organized a Careers in Film symposium at the White House, with Whoopi Goldberg, Naomie Harris, Ryan Coogler, David Frankel and Blake Lively also attending the event.
The disgraced film producer, sentenced in January to 23 years in prison for rape, had long been a Democrat donor.
Since the 1990s he had given over $75,000 – $3,000 to former Bill Clinton’s reelection campaign in 2000; more than $26,000 to campaigns or political action committees backing Hillary Clinton since 2000; and more than $45,000 to campaigns or PACs backing Barack Obama in his two bids for the presidency.
The Obamas used their Weinstein connection to help their daughter Malia secure an internship at the film company in 2017.
In October 2017 The New York Times published their bombshell revelations about Weinstein.
The Obamas issued a statement, proclaiming their disgust.
Weinstein, pictured with Obama and Blake Lively, donated more than $75,000 to Democrats
Barack Obama is pictured with Weinstein, Senator Lautenberg and Senator Schumer
‘Michelle and I have been disgusted by the recent reports about Harvey Weinstein,’ Obama said in the statement, which was released two days after Weinstein was fired from the company he co-founded.
‘Any man who demeans and degrades women in such fashion needs to be condemned and held accountable, regardless of wealth or status.’
‘We should celebrate the courage of women who have come forward to tell these painful stories.
‘And we all need to build a culture – including by empowering our girls and teaching our boys decency and respect – so we can make such behavior less prevalent in the future.’
Michelle Obama’s 2013 remarks, however, have frequently come back to haunt her – as they did after her speech.
One man said her endorsement was ‘nearly as beautiful as her endorsement of Weinstein’
Another pointed out that the Obamas had allowed Malia to intern with the disgraced mogul
One Twitter user said: ‘Her morals need help’
One Twitter user said: ‘Her morals need help’, while another said her endorsement of Biden was ‘nearly as beautiful as her endorsement of Weinstein’.
Another pointed out that the Obamas allowed Malia to intern with the disgraced film mogul, in the summer of 2017.
Obama’s supporters, however, hit back.
They pointed out that Trump had plenty of controversy of his own, with one describing the president as a ‘predator’, and pointing out that he too socialized with Weinstein.
Others defended Obama, pointing out that Trump had also socialized with Weinstein