Michael Douglas hopes for midterm 'massacre,' takes aim at Trump - USA Today
Michael Douglas hasn't been holding back lately, from revealing his long-hidden affair with Kathleen Turner to recalling how few friends checked in after his cancer diagnosis. Now he's adding politics into the mix, with a bold hope for the upcoming midterm elections.
The Oscar-winning actor, 82, wished for sweeping Democratic victories during an interview on the BBC's "Today" program, taking aim at President Donald Trump ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
Host Katya Adler cited Douglas' support for Democrats and asked whether the party had done enough to reconnect with voters and win back votes ahead of the upcoming midterms.
"We'll see," the actor said. "I'm hoping for a massacre," Douglas said, explaining that he wants "overwhelming Democratic votes across the board."
Douglas suggested that Trump's repeated assurances and familiar talking points might be wearing thin with voters. "I think unfortunately the president [Trump] has exhausted his promises and repetitions," Douglas said.
The actor believes Democrats will regain control of the House and that the Senate could also change hands, an outcome he suggested had only recently seemed possible. But Douglas said Democrats' victory should bring attention to voters' financial concerns.
"I think they've got a pretty good plan as to what they want to do," he said, adding Democrats needed to "work on these issues of affordability if there is this dramatic change."
Host Nick Robinson also asked whether Trump had used the Democratic Party's celebrity supporters, including Douglas, to portray the party as wealthy and out of touch.
Though Douglas said he had not "felt a personal attack" by Trump, he argued that the president's own fame from "The Apprentice" helped fuel his political success.
"Everybody knew him and it reflected exactly into his image as the president," Douglas said. "And that's why people loved him.
"Everybody knew him and it reflected exactly into his image as the president," Douglas said.
The political comments come amid renewed attention to Douglas' personal life though his memoir, "One Helluva Ride."


