Up until recently, the talk of Oprah Winfrey running for president was lumped in with other celebrities, like The Rock, Kanye West, and Mark Cuban, basically, it’s a fun story, but it AIN’T GONNA HAPPEN.
Some people think Sunday was a bit of a watershed moment when she delivered that stirring, empowering speech at the Golden Globes…so much so that hashtags like ‘#Oprah2020’ began trending heavily on social media.
So, is it actually possible that she would run? It’s hard to say, but for the first time, Oprah isn’t shutting down the talk. At least not yet. When “Bloomberg” asked her backstage if she had any plans to run, she said, “I don’t. I don’t.”
But then, the “L.A. Times” asked her if she’d think about it, and she said, “Okay.”
Yesterday, CNN said that two anonymous “close friends” of Oprah’s claim she’s, “actively thinking” about it. One of them thinks she’s been considering it for several months.
Oprah’s longtime partner, Stedman Graham, threw some fuel on the fire, too. He was asked about it, and he said, “It’s up to the people. She would absolutely do it.”
Oprah hasn’t really addressed the current hysteria, but just last October, she laughed at the idea, saying, “There will be no running for office of any kind for me.” Here’s video. Skip to the 9:30 mark.
Is Oprah Winfrey “Actively Thinking” About Running for President? | The Bert Show
And last June she told “The Hollywood Reporter,” “I will never run for public office. That’s a pretty definitive thing.” Here are more of her past quotes.
Interestingly enough, way back in 1999, Trump endorsed her as his future running mate. He said, “If she’d do it, she’d be fantastic. She’s popular, she’s brilliant, she’s a wonderful woman.”
In another ironic twist, Trump once denied interest in running for president…during an interview with Oprah back in 1988. He said, “Probably not. I just don’t have the inclination…I love what I’m doing.” Although he said he wouldn’t rule it out totally.
Is Oprah Winfrey “Actively Thinking” About Running for President? | The Bert Show
Still, no matter what you think of President Trump, it’s WAY too early to be talking about the next election, and yet, the biggest thing trending right now is “#Oprah2020.”
So naturally, an Internet gambling company has updated their odds, and they’re giving Oprah a 20-to-1 chance of becoming our next president.
That’s better than other ‘celebrity’ options like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, who both have 25-to-1 odds. Former Vice President Joe Biden and Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand are also at 25-to-1.
Oprah would be FAR from a favorite at this point. Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris are both at 12-to-1 and leading the pack, of course, is the president himself, Donald Trump, at 2-to-1.
For what it’s worth, a different odds-maker is TOTALLY buying the hype, and has cut Oprah’s odds down to 10-to-1 and equal with Biden, current veep Mike Pence, and Senator Warren.
That same site also gives Hillary Clinton 50-1 odds.