Trump trashes George Clooney after "fake movie actor" calls for Biden to step aside

Trump ranted that Biden “brought our Democracy to its knees,” but suggested that he should stay in the race

By Nandika Chatterjee

News Fellow

Published July 11, 2024 12:51PM (EDT)

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Doral, Florida, on July 9, 2024. (GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images)
Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Doral, Florida, on July 9, 2024. (GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images)

You know the tide is turning when two-time Oscar winning Hollywood actor and film producer George Clooney writes an op-ed in the New York Times urging President Joe Biden to step aside, an intervention that angered the president's loyalists. But Donald Trump too is purporting to  take offense at the 800-word piece, trashing it on Truth Social by saying: “He’s turned on Crooked Joe like the rats they both are.”

The op-ed, published Wednesday and entitled, “George Clooney: I love Joe Biden. But We Need a New Nominee,” urged the president to step down for the good of the country, citing his apparent mental decline.

“As Democrats, we collectively hold our breath or turn down the volume whenever we see the president, whom we respect, walk off Air Force One or walk back to a mic to answer an unscripted question,” Clooney wrote. “We are not going to win in November with this president. On top of that, we won’t win the House, and we’re going to lose the Senate."

Clooney reported his “devastating” experience at a fundraiser he co-hosted for Biden’s re-election, just weeks earlier, saying the president appeared just as out of it as he did at last month's debate.

In Trump’s Wednesday night response, he called Clooney a “fake movie actor” who doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Trump continued: “Crooked Joe Biden didn’t save our Democracy, he brought our Democracy to its knees. Clooney should get out of politics and go back to television. Movies never really worked for him!!!”

But, the former president couldn’t be more pleased with the negative attention his political opponent has been receiving, The Daily Beast reported. Last weekend, he posted on TruthSocial, teasing Biden and encouraging him to stay in the race. 

“Crooked Joe Biden should ignore his many critics and move forward, with alacrity and strength, with his powerful and far reaching campaign. He should be sharp, precise, and energetic, just like he was in The Debate…” he wrote.


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