What Bette Midler Said About Melania Trump Is Sparking An Uproar

First lady Melania Trump appeared in the recently renovated Rose Garden at the White House during the Republican National Convention on August 25, 2020, to endorse her husband, President Donald Trump. The same evening, actor, singer, and comedian Bette Midler jumped on Twitter and published several tweets in response to the first lady's address. In the first tweet, Midler referenced Melania's anti-bullying campaign slogan, "Be Best," tweeting, "#beBest is back! A [huge] bore! She can speak several words in a few languages. Get that illegal alien off the stage!" For the record, Melania was born in the former Yugoslavia, in a region now known as Slovenia, and her first language is Slovenian. She moved to the United States in 1996, met Donald Trump in 1998, became a permanent resident of the U.S. in 2001, and married the future president in 2005. Midler, clearly committed to live-tweeting the speech, then addressed Melania's renovation of the Rose Garden, writing, "#Melania took all the color out of the #RoseGarden but Don tried his utmost to bring some back with that greasy bronzer!" Minutes later, Midler tweeted, "Oh, God. She still can't speak English." The actor followed this up with another tweet, quipping, "I'm surprised Trump wants to destroy the #PostOffice. He got all his wives from it." Midler had much more to say, but many Twitter users weren't happy about it. In response to Midler's tweet where she called the first lady an "illegal alien," one Twitter user responded, "Ms [Midler], illegal alien is basically a racial slur. She's terrible and I dislike her as much as you do. But that term hurts real people. No person is illegal." Another person tweeted, "What happened to 'women empowerment?' Us supporting each other? Does that only apply to 40% of the women in this country? This post is a disgrace to all women." This particular comment sparked other replies, and one person responded in support, "Exactly! We should be lifting each other up. This comment sets all women back. What an irresponsible comment." In response to Midler's tweet, "Oh, God. She still can't speak English," a Twitter user responded with, "How many languages do you speak, Bette? Melania: Slovenian, English, French, Italian, and German." Another person wrote, in reference to Midler's 1982 smash hit, "Who knew xenophobia was the wind beneath your wings!" Midler responded to the backlash the next day, telling her critics that she was, quote, "giving them a taste of their own immigrant bashing medicine." It might be surprising that Midler gets caught up in Twitter feuds like this, since she has previously warned about the potential hurt caused by social media. In an interview with Radio Times in June 2020, just two months before her tweets about Melania Trump, Midler spoke about the ugly side of social media, saying, "When I was growing up, we had the best of it. My generation had peace, contentment, civility; we don't have those things today. People are allowed to say the worst things they can think of [on social media], which can injure people to the core of their being. It destroys lives, which is just not fair." Midler had more to say on Twitter the day after Melania Trump's big speech. She tweeted, "Well, all hell has broken loose because I said Melania 'still can't speak English' last night. I was wrong to make fun of her accent. America is made up [of] people who speak with all kinds of accents, and they are all welcomed always." Despite the actor's admission, other users wanted more from Midler. One posted, "OK. You've admitted you were wrong. Where's the apology?" Another commenter said, quote, "Bette Midler should be [ashamed] of herself...you should think [before] you speak." However, some cut Midler slack, like the person who wrote, "You are a comedian and you make fun of stuff." Someone else argued that the Hawaii native didn't need to speak up. "No apologies are needed. These are the same people who mock Joe Biden for his stutter." As the 2020 election draws near, expect more high-profile Twitter spats, the "Divine Miss M," for her part, has never been one to back down. Watch the video to learn how What Bette Midler Said About Melania Trump Is Sparking An Uproar! #MelaniaTrump #BetteMidler