Anthony Bourdain, American Hero, Says He’d Poison Donald Trump Given the Chance

TMZ stopped Anthony Bourdain at LAX for a little chat last week and asked him what he’d serve if he was asked to cater peace talks between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un. Bourdain, showing exactly the qualities that make us love Anthony Bourdain, replied “Hemlock,” which is almost exactly the plot of the episode of Archer he guested on.

Bourdain later told Fox News, perhaps sarcastically, that he meant to say kale.

Of course the right wing has their panties in a bunch again, like they did with Kathy Griffin. They didn’t get that upset when Ted Nugent, a man who s**t his pants for days to get out of going to Vietnam, threatened to kill President Barack Obama on multiple occasions. During the 2012 election, Nugent famously said “If Barack Obama becomes the president in November, again, I will be either be dead or in jail by this time next year.” As president, Trump invited Nugent to the White House.

The same people condemning Bourdain applauded President Trump when he, as a candidate, said of Hillary Clinton “If she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Although the Second Amendment people — maybe there is, I don’t know,” a pretty clear call for the assassination of the former Secretary of State.

And who could forget the 2010 midterm election when Sharron Angle, running against then Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, said “And you know, I’m hoping that we’re not getting to Second Amendment remedies. I hope the vote will be the cure for the Harry Reid problems,” suggesting that Republicans should simply assassinate Democrats if they don’t win elections.

Republicans voted for these people. Donald Trump suggested Hillary Clinton needed to be assassinated if she won the presidency, and 60 million people voted for him to be president. And now those same people act like the world is ending when Johnny Depp makes a joke about how an actor killed Lincoln.

I’m tired of the pretend outrage when someone says something like this. We all know Anthony Bourdain was joking and he isn’t really going to serve Donald Trump hemlock, because he’s not going to cook for him. And if you vote for someone who suggests his opponent should be assassinated so she doesn’t appoint some middling, center-right pro-corporate judge to the Supreme Court then you don’t get to act like a celebrity making a joke is over the line.