Actor, comedian and activist Billy Eichner totally gets why Taylor Swift took so long to get publicly political. In this bonus episode of The New Abnormal, the “Billy on the Street” star explains why celebrities may take a long time to speak up—and how Trump is changing that.
“It’s easy to sit back from a distance and say like, ‘Why doesn’t so-and-so get more political.’ And I definitely feel that way sometimes, but the few times I've had like internet backlash for something or, you know, people being angry at something, I can hold my own. And it doesn’t, like, ruin my life at all,” he explained. But that isn’t the case with people like Taylor Swift, he says, who gets internet hate to the 1000th degree.
“I think Trump pushed us to a place” where celebs who were previously silent on major issues now feel compelled to speak up. That said, he is just “sick of getting angry on Twitter.” Sure, he can take on the haters but he wants action.
And it all started when he felt helpless. Yes, the guy who became famous for yelling at strangers on the street felt helpless—so he took action.
“I want to do something tangible, you know.”
Eichner also spoke about the ways he’s trying to make one of his biggest dreams come true: “It would make me so pleased to flip the Senate.” Plus, he shares his thoughts on the South Carolina race between Lindsey Graham and Jaime Harrison.
“Lindsey Graham, to me, is the epitome of someone who makes me physically ill,” he said.
And of course, he answers our burning question: When is Billy on the Street going to come back?
Listen to The New Abnormal on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher.
