Julia Louis-Dreyfus opened up about the Me Too movement and former Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) in the latest issue of Time magazine, saying the movement “takes no prisoners” and praising the ex-senator.
“He was and is an intelligent leader who got things done,” said Louis-Dreyfus. “He was on the right side of the issues.”
In October 2017, several other women came forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Franken after Leeann Tweeden, a radio host, wrote an essay accusing him of kissing and groping her without her consent during a 2006 USO tour. Franken retired from the Senate on Jan. 2, 2018.
Louis-Dreyfus, who accepted the Peabody Award for “Veep” from Franken in May 2017, told Time that the accusations against him paled “in comparison to what else is going on out there.”
“This #MeToo revolution, I’m very much in favor of it, but it takes no prisoners,” said Louis-Dreyfus, who called the magazine after the interview to clarify that her “default position is to believe victims.”
The comedian and actress has been a longtime supporter of sexual assault survivors coming forward and was one of the women who attended Christine Blasey Ford’s high school and signed a letter of support for her when she made her allegations against then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Ford alleged that Kavanaugh tried to sexually assault her when they were both in high school.
“We believe Dr. Blasey Ford and are grateful that she came forward to tell her story,” read the draft letter from alumnae of Holton-Arms, a private girls school in Bethesda, Maryland. “It demands a thorough and independent investigation before the Senate can reasonably vote on Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to a lifetime seat on the nation’s highest court.”
More than 200 women signed the letter, including some who attended the school well before or after Ford was there. Louis-Dreyfus graduated in 1979, several classes ahead of Ford.
The 11-time Emmy Award winner elaborated on the current state of politics in the Time profile and what that means for comedians. She rebuffed the argument from some people that nobody can crack a joke today without getting attacked by the PC police.
“I think as soon as people start bitching about ‘politically correct,’ it’s a term for something else,” said the former “Seinfeld” star. “I’m in favor of political correctness. I’m suspicious of those who have a problem with it. I think it is language for something else ― for ‘It’s O.K. to make racist jokes,’ or ‘It’s O.K. to make violence-against-women jokes.’”
She also offered some blunt thoughts about President Donald Trump, saying: “He’d be funny if he didn’t have the power he has. He’s sort of a pretend, fake President. He’s a complete moron, start to finish.”