Superstar stand-up comic Jim Gaffigan recently addressed anti-Trump social media posts he made in 2020, and supporters of President-elect Donald Trump took his criticism personally. He said he regretted this.
Gaffigan, who recently played former Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz (D-Minn.) on “Saturday Night Live,” said of the negative sentiment surrounding the old tweet. new interview In “The Daily Beast.”
“I'm sorry that it seemed like I was criticizing people who support Trump. And that was never my intention. I regret it. They said something like, “I can't keep up,'' and I was like, 'F you,''' the comedian said.
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Cartoonist Jim Gaffigan said he regrets that Trump supporters took his past anti-Trump social media posts personally. (Rebecca Noble / Stringer | Dia Dipasupil / Staff)
Gaffigan lashed out at Trump in a series of tweets in 2020, when X was still running Twitter and Trump was seeking re-election. In it, he wrote, “Look, Trumpers, I get it. As a kid, I was a Cubs fan and I know you're going to stand by your team no matter what, but he's a traitor. And a con man who doesn't care about you. Deep down, he was a Cubs fan. I know you like to piss people off, but Trump is a liar and a criminal. I know.”
In another article, he slammed President Trump for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, writing, “You know Trump only makes enemies. You know he can't be trusted. “You know he was incompetent in this crisis. You know all those people didn't do that.” You don't have to die. You can't safely go to the movies if Trump is talking about the space program. ”
Four years later, Gaffigan told the outlet that he regretted how the post was taken by some people, but insisted he did not regret posting it.
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“But it's weird, because I think it's really important to be authentic, not just as a comedian, but also for kids,” he added, “For me, I don't regret it. “They're true die-hard Trump fans who probably enjoyed my comedy, but they feel it so passionately that You'll never forgive me. ”
Gaffigan went on to admit that alienating people in such ways is just part of being a comedian.
“However, what I've noticed after doing stand-up for many years is that the number of people will always decrease.It's possible to attract people.But there will also be people like “Me.'' I don't have kids, so I think he's interesting, but I don't understand him.''
When asked if he felt like he lost a lot of fans because of those posts, he replied, “Not in a measurable way. But there were certainly comments on social media, and I still do. Yes, my son is very funny — I posted something and my 18-year-old son commented, “I liked President Trump until he started ranting.''
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New York Governor Kathy Hochul and comedian Jim Gaffigan attend the Alfred E. Smith Foundation Annual Dinner at the New York Hilton Midtown on October 17, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images) (Getty Images)
The outlet also asked him what he thought about the backlash he received for his recent performance at the Al Smith Dinner in New York City. During his set, Gaffigan fired shots at President Trump, who was in attendance that night, and Vice President Kamala Harris, who declined his invitation.
He spoke about being accused by liberals of routinely disrespecting Trump.
“I was 'normalizing fascists,' right? I knew that if I addressed this issue, I would get criticism from both sides. I'm not a comedian. I mean, I love politics, but politics I just don't talk about it.'' That's it,'' he said.
“So I knew that if I made jokes about either side, there would be some backlash. But I also thought it was worth it.”
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