Mon. April 25, 2011
Chicago, IL -
Rosie O'Donnell seems to have put her differences with Donald Trump aside as the talk show host plans to make the Trump International Hotel and Tower her Chicago address while she tapes her new daytime talk show for the Oprah Winfrey Network.
Making the announcement on her SiriusXM radio show last week, O'Donnell called it "the most absurd place for her to live in Chicago," saying, "They got me the Penthouse at the new Trump Chicago. It's gonna be fantastic in a lot of ways. I hate him in an entertaining-not-real way."
O'Donnell and Trump have been feuding for years. He has called O'Donnell a "real loser", adding she was "disgusting, both inside and out".
Her newly announced housing plans follow recent anti-gay statements from Trump as he gears up for a potential presidential run in 2012.
"I'm not in favor of gay marriage," Trump recently said as he appealed to conservative voters. "They should not be able to marry."
Trump also recently rejected the concept of civil unions and even medical benefits for same-sex partners.
O'Donnell's plan to move into Trump's building in Chicago has many questioning her decision. In an editorial published on the HuffPost, AfterEllen.com managing editor Trish Bendix writes, "Hopefully someone on staff can figure out a less ‘absurd' place for Rosie to stay while in town."
Last week the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) asked supporters to "Tune Out Trump" and reject his television shows, hotels, resorts, and golf courses.
"Surely there are several other Chicago hotels that have a penthouse available for Rosie, ones that don't come along with putting money into the pockets of someone who is likely to use them to fund a presidential campaign working against equality," writes Bendix.
"I challenge Oprah, Rosie and the corporations involved to find another hotel to patronize in Chicago, one that isn't working against the same ideals they claim to fight for," she concludes. "And I challenge every other LGBT-supportive citizen to sign the pledge to Tune Out Trump, in 2012 and beyond."
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