Media

Bill Kristol tweets ‘I’m With Her’ on possible Oprah 2020 bid

by Jonathan Easley - 01/08/18 11:58 AM ET

Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol, a fierce critic of President Trump, tweeted his support on Monday for Oprah Winfrey should she run for president in 2020.

Kristol, who refused to back Trump in the 2016 presidential race, tweeted that he believed Winfrey’s well-received speech on Sunday night at the Golden Globes was an indication she’s preparing to run for the White House.

Kristol then took-up the hashtag #ImWithHer — once used by supporters of 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton — to highlight his support for Winfrey’s worldview.

In an email, Kristol said the tweets were “tongue in cheek.”

“Though if she runs, couldn’t she win the Democratic nomination and the general election?” he added. “And wouldn’t she be a better president than Trump?”

Kristol recruited challengers to Trump in 2016 and often criticizes the president.

In his series of tweets, Kristol mentioned a number of possible other Democratic hopefuls.

Oprah.#ImWithHer

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) January 8, 2018

Oprah: Sounder on economics than Bernie Sanders, understands Middle America better than Elizabeth Warren, less touchy-feely than Joe Biden, more pleasant than Andrew Cuomo, more charismatic than John Hickenlooper.#ImWithHer

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) January 8, 2018

Oprah: Younger than Sanders, Biden, Warren, and Hickenlooper.

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) January 8, 2018

Kristol cited Winfrey’s support for regime change in Iraq when Saddam Hussein was in power and her friendship with Allan Bloom, a conservative philosopher who was critical of the higher education system in the U.S., as reasons for why he admires her.

Oprah: Pro-regime change in Iraq (see her Oct. 9, 2002 show).#ImWithHer

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) January 8, 2018

Oprah: Friend of Allan Bloom (see her show “How Dumb Are We?” from I believe 1988).#ImWithHer

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) January 8, 2018

Winfrey’s acceptance speech for a lifetime achievement award at the Golden Globes on Sunday night sparked a media frenzy over her 2020 plans. CNN reported Monday that Winfrey is “actively thinking” about a White House run.

Updated at 12:02 p.m.