Anthony Bourdain Demolishes Hillary Clinton’s Weinstein Response

Celebrity chef and “Parts Unknown” host Anthony Bourdain took to Twitter on Wednesday to call out former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for a CNN interview she gave regarding Harvey Weinstein, the now-disgraced producer who was a big donor to Clinton.

Bourdain called the interview “uninspiring,” “shameful” and “disingenuous.” Bourdain has a personal stake in the fallout from the Weinstein scandal — as he is dating actress Asia Argento, one of the women who went on record to say Weinstein raped her.

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Argento had previously taken to Twitter to post a scene from her film “Scarlet Diva,” which was a partial re-enactment of her alleged rape.

“I was — I was just sick,” Clinton told Fareed Zakaria on CNN about the Weinstein revelations. “I was shocked. I was appalled. And, you know, like so many people who’ve come forward and spoken out, this was a different side of a person who I and many others had known in the past.”

Clinton’s failed 2016 presidential campaign had received over $45,000 in campaign donations from Weinstein, and the former secretary of state had been pictured with the producer many times over the years.

She continued by saying she was unaware of Weinstein’s actions and alleged abuse of women. “I certainly didn’t [know], and I don’t know who did. But I can only speak for myself, and I think I speak for many others who knew him primarily through politics,” she said.

She added that she would donate the money she was given by Weinstein to charity.

Bourdain was not buying any of it. “I have to say, Hillary’s interview with Fareed Zakaria was shameful in its deflection and its disingenuousness,” he tweeted.

He continued, “Know what Hillary Clinton is NOT? She’s not stupid. Or unsophisticated about the world. The Weinstein stories had been out there for years.”

But Bourdain also complimented Clinton, saying she came across as “intelligent” when he had met her previously. Yet he said he had “hoped for a better response.”

“I can assure you that the victims of Mr. Weinstein’s three decades of predatory behavior are disappointed too. I’m sitting next to one,” he added, implying Argento was disappointed, as well.

Bourdain continued with his criticisms on social media by saying there were others close to Weinstein who had yet to be unmasked to the world.

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Clinton had previously released a statement regarding Weinstein a full five days after The New York Times published the original report about his misconduct. It was short and far less heartfelt than longer statements from former Weinstein co-workers such as Ben Affleck and fellow donation recipients such as the Obamas.

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Weinstein is under investigation by the New York Police Department (NYPD) over a 2004 incident, and police are searching for anyone victimized by the producer, according to a report from Fox News. “Based on information referenced in published news reports, the NYPD is conducting a review to determine if there are any additional complaints relating to the Harvey Weinstein matter,” J. Peter Donald, with the NYPD’s deputy commissioner of public information, told the news outlet. “No filed complaints have been identified as of this time and, as always, the NYPD encourages anyone who may have information pertaining to this matter to call the CrimeStoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS.”

Since the initial reports about Weinstein’s behavior were released, numerous actresses have gone on record to describe their personal experiences with Weinstein, which mostly include him trying to coerce them into sexual favors by using his power as the head of a movie studio.

Kate Beckinsale, star of the “Underworld” franchise, took to Instagram on Thursday to detail her uncomfortable run-ins with him.

She revealed she had been called by Weinstein to a hotel room for a business meeting when she was just 17 (Weinstein would have been 38). The producer greeted her in a bathrobe and had no business to discuss.

“I was incredibly naïve and young, and it did not cross my mind that this older, unattractive man would expect me to have any sexual interest in him,” she said. “After declining alcohol and announcing that I had school in the morning I left, uneasy but unscathed. A few years later he asked me if he had tried anything with me in that first meeting. I realized he couldn’t remember if he had assaulted me or not.”

She continued, “I had what I thought were boundaries — I said no to him professionally many times over the years — some of which ended up with him screaming at me, calling me a c*** and making threats, some of which made him laughingly tell people, ‘Oh, Kate lives to say no to me.’ It speaks to the status quo in this business that I was aware that standing up for myself and saying no to things, while it did allow me to feel uncompromised in myself, undoubtedly harmed my career and was never something I felt supported by anyone other than my family.”

(photo credit, homepage images: Anthony Bourdain, CC BY 2.0, by Peabody Awards; photo credit, article images: Senator Clinton…, CC BY-SA 2.0, by Lorie Shaull)