Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres has justified her friendship with former president George W Bush, saying "we're all different."
The pair were spotted sitting next to each other and laughing at a football game over the weekend.
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Photos of the unlikely friends made their way to Twitter, and DeGeneres said users were "upset'.
So upset in fact, DeGeneres decided to explain on Tuesday's episode of The Ellen Show.
DeGeneres and her wife Portia had been invited to the game by the daughter of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, Charlotte.
"When we were invited [to the game] I was aware I'd be surrounded by people with very different views and beliefs," she said.
"And I'm not talking about politics. I was rooting for the Packers, and get this, everybody in the Cowboys suite was rooting for the Cowboys," she joked.
But her jokes turned more serious as revealed the picture had received hate on Twitter.
"They thought 'why is a gay Hollywood liberal sitting next to a conservative Republican president?'"
However, she says one Tweet warmed her heart it read "Ellen and George Bush together makes me have faith in America again."
"We're all different. And I think that we've forgotten that that's okay that we're all different," she continued.
"When I say be kind to everyone I don't mean be kind to the people who think the same way you do. I mean be kind to everyone."
She drew the comparison between not liking people wearing fur but still being friends with people who do.
Her speech has drawn criticism from Twitter users, who appear unimpressed.
"Disagreeing with friends who wear fur is not the same as being friends with an anti-gay war criminal President that directly and negatively impacted millions of lives," wrote one user.
"She was never directly impacted by the effects of the 2008 crash or was bombed by the US military in broad daylight for no reason. That's why she's comfortable sitting next to him," wrote another.
"'Look, I'm too rich for his decisions to really affect me' is what this boils down to," said a third.
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