Samantha Bee stings her critics
“Sorry for breaking America,” said political satirist Samantha Bee, wasting no time Wednesday upon the opening of her show in addressing the firestorm she ignited last week when she referred to Ivanka Trump as “a feckless” c-word during the May 30 episode of Full Frontal.
It was the former Daily Show correspondent’s first television appearance since the segment caused the White House to demand TBS cancel Bee’s hit show, and stoked social media’s overworked outrage machine.
But rather than dropping a quick mea culpa to assuage her detractors and the network, Bee continued in an uncharacteristically solemn tone:
“A lot of people were offended and angry that I used an epithet to describe the president’s daughter and adviser last week. I crossed a line and I do apologize for that ... The problem is that many women have heard that word at the worst moments of their lives. A lot of women don’t want that word reclaimed, they want it gone and I don’t blame them. I don’t want to inflict more pain on them.” Then Bee joked, “Many men were also offended by my use of the word ... I do not care about that ... I never intended it to hurt anyone, except Ted Cruz.”
She ended her half-hour show with a news clip of former president Bill Clinton, who was asked if he felt he should apologize to Monica Lewinsky, the intern he had an affair with during his presidency. No, he said.
Bee smirked and said: “I promised I would never call anyone that word again. But make no mistake, I can think it.”