Former President Obama may have chosen the wrong battle to sit out.
That’s according to Rose McGowan, at least, who revealed in an extensive interview that she was “disappointed” by Obama’s reluctance to criticize sexual predators in Hollywood.
Speaking with the Hollywood Reporter, McGowan claimed she met with Obama just weeks after the Weinstein allegations broke. She’d been publicly leading the chase against the Oscar-winning producer, serving as a de-facto voice for all the women who were too afraid to come out against one of Hollywood’s most powerful men.
But the former most powerful man in America refused to comment on the situation when he saw McGowan at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit in New Delhi, India, in December 2017.
Rose McGowan @rosemcgowan meets @NaomiCampbell and @BarackObama at HT Leadership Summit with LIBERATUM in India @htTweets #Liberatum pic.twitter.com/H0CxWsK2YD
— Liberatum (@LiberatumGlobal) December 6, 2017
She tells the Hollywood Reporter, in part:
“I was disappointed he didn’t acknowledge a global fight, let alone mine,” she said. “It was after everything had come out,” but he didn’t mention her Weinstein battles. This was especially hard for her because Obama’s daughter Malia had interned at the Weinstein Co. “I was sitting right in front of him, and he would not meet my eyes, and then at the last minute, he asked for Naomi Campbell to be put in a photo with us,” recalls McGowan. She says she was hoping she’d hear, “I’m sorry” or “Keep going, Rose.” “All he said was: ‘You ladies sure know how to pose.’ I wanted him to be better.”
It’s unclear why Obama refused to address the situation. But McGowan is suspicious he may have had a conflict of interests.
Last year — mere months before the Weinstein scandal broke — Obama’s eldest daughter, Malia, interned for The Weinstein Co. And over the duration of his career, Weinstein was a notable Democratic donor. He reportedly donated over $45,000 to Obama and has hosted glitzy fundraisers for the former president. In the past, Obama has offered glowing praise for Weinstein and his wife, thanking them for “their friendship and support, and for the amazing movies that they’ve made.”
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