Justice

Bill O'Reilly Has One Very Powerful Supporter

April 5th 2017

Bill O'Reilly has been facing intense media pressure even since the New York Times reported about the Fox News host's string of settlements related to sexual harassment allegations.

bill oreillyAssociated Press - apimages.com

But the embattled star does have one very powerful supporter — President Donald Trump.

Despite a New York Times report that O'Reilly paid out $13 million in sexual harassment settlements to five different women — all who either worked for O'Reilly or had appeared as guests on the show — it's clear that President Trump's affection for O'Reilly hasn't dimmed.

"I think he’s a person I know well — he is a good person,” Trump said of the host, while flanked by Vice President Mike Pence and other high-level aides. “I think he shouldn’t have settled; personally I think he shouldn’t have settled. Because you should have taken it all the way. I don’t think Bill did anything wrong.”

The social media reaction to President Trump's praise for O'Reilly was swift and unified. 

Trump was singled out as a hypocrite for minimizing the sexual harassment claims against O'Reilly within the same week he declared April to be "National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month."

Trump was also hit for calling O'Reilly "a good person," given O'Reilly's history of harassment lawsuits.

Trump's own history of sexual assault allegations was also brought up, as was the infamous 2005 "Access Hollywood" tape, in which the future President was caught bragging about his infidelity and ability to kiss and grab women due to his celebrity and wealth.

Even Trump's instance that O'Reilly "shouldn't have settled" the suits was mocked, given that the interview was less than a week after Trump had to pay out a $25 million settlement in the Trump University fraud lawsuit.

O'Reilly himself released a statement after the story broke, declaring “Just like other prominent and controversial people, I’m vulnerable to lawsuits from individuals who want me to pay them to avoid negative publicity," and that, "In my more than 20 years at Fox News Channel, no one has ever filed a complaint about me with the Human Resources Department, even on the anonymous hotline."

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