Actress Debra Messing is facing criticism for her response to a tweet that appeared to incite violence against Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and former NRA spokesperson Dana Loesch.
The “Will and Grace” star has been called out by social media users after she responded to a Twitter user’s post on Aug. 5. The tweet called for violence against McConnell and Loesch following the two mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, over the weekend.
“If I get killed in a mass shooting please cremate me and throw my ashes into Mitch McConnell’s and Dana Loesch’s eyes while I’m still smoldering,” the user’s tweet read.
In response, Messing wrote: “THIS. Yesssssssssss.”
The actress’s post quickly attracted attention on the internet, prompting multiple people to denounce Messing’s remarks. Many users have described the tweet as “sick.”
“Debra—people from all political leanings consume your shows and enjoy you and them. Why would you take a deep dive into the disgusting by reacting like this to a horrific tweet?
Take a breath. Get out of the Hollywood mindset for a second and be a person. Thanks,” talk show host Joe Pags Pagliarulo said.
“What kind of sick person do you have to be to cheer something like this on? Genuinely at a loss for words here. Wow,” Daily Wire contributor Harry Khachatrian said.
“Sickening,” Walk Up Foundation founder, Ryan Petty said.
The actress has not yet issued a response to the criticism and has continued to retweet and post about the massacres that left 31 people dead.
One protestor said she hopes someone “stabs the mother [expletive] in the heart, please,” while another said they hope someone uses a “voodoo doll” on the lawmaker. The protest was partially in response to the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton but is also about a range of policy issues.
McConnell took to Twitter on Aug. 4 to react to the mass shootings in Ohio and Texas, writing, “Sickening to learn this morning of another mass murder in Dayton, Ohio overnight. Two horrifying acts of violence in less than 24 hours. We stand with law enforcement as they continue working to keep Americans safe and bring justice.”
