Bette Midler had apologized for dismissing the entire state of West Virginia as "poor, illiterate, and strung out."
The 76-year-old sparked public outrage after making the comment, which was aimed at Sen Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., for torpedoing President Joe Biden’s multitrillion-dollar spending plans on social media.
"What #JoeManchin, who represents a population smaller than Brooklyn, has done to the rest of America, who wants to move forward, not backward, like his state, is horrible. He sold us out," Midler tweeted Monday.
"He wants us all to be just like his state, West Virginia. Poor, illiterate and strung out," she added.
The tweet drew the ire of followers and notable public figures including Donald Trump Jr., who slammed Midler as being "elite."
"This is exactly what they think of good hardworking Americans that live outside of their elite bulls--t NY/LA bubbles," he tweeted in reference to Midler's attack. "They hate that a Democrat would actually represent his constituents rather than follow blindly the insane and radical plans of lunatic DC Dems!"
Others called Midler out for making such a broad statement without knowing anything about the people living in the state.
"I’m from WV, I’m not poor, illiterate or strung out. What I am is disgusted by this tweet and as a middle school teacher, it takes a lot to disgust me. It’s hard for me to tell my students to be better people when adults do stuff like this," a Twitter user wrote.
"I would suggest that you remember there are real people at the other end of this tweet, and that shaming an entire state for things largely out of their control isn’t a great look," another added.
"This is just a simple reminder of how the 'elite' feel about normal Americans. She isn’t the only one but rather a representative of many. Remember this when you think about voting blue next time around," a third chimed in.
In response to the backlash, Midler apologized to "the good people of WVA" for her "outburst."
"I’m just seeing red; #JoeManchin and his whole family are a criminal enterprise," she tweeted. "Is he really the best WV has to offer its own citizens? Surely there’s someone there who has the state’s interests at heart, not his own!"
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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