“CBS This Morning” host Gayle King on Tuesday said her pal Oprah Winfrey is “intrigued” by the idea of a presidential run in the wake of the rapturous reception to her Golden Globes speech on Sunday — but doesn’t think it will be enough to persuade Winfrey to break her long-standing disinterest in holding elective office.
“I absolutely don’t think that her position has changed,” King said on “CBS This Morning.” “I was up talking to her late last night. I do think she is intrigued by the idea. I do think that. I also know that after years of watching the ‘Oprah Show,’ you always have the right to change your mind. I don’t think at this point she is actually considering it.”
The CBS morning host also offered her explanation of what Winfrey’s longterm partner, Stedman Graham, might meant when he told the Los Angeles Times on Sunday about a potential presidential campaign. “It’s up to the people — she would absolutely do it,” he was reported as saying.
King said that Graham thought the reporter asked, “Would she make a good president?” to which he responded, “Absolutely, she would.”
“That is how he interpreted the question,” King said. “Because here’s the thing: Stedman would never so cavalierly say, ‘Absolutely she would do it. It’s up to the people.’ …He would never just throw it out there like that.”
But Oprah “loves this country and would like to be in service in some way, but I don’t think she is actively considering it,” King said.
Back in October, Winfrey’s publicist told TheWrap that she is “not running for office.”
Speculation has, however, continued to loom, returning with a vengeance Sunday night after the entertainment mogul’s widely-hailed acceptance speech for the Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award during the Golden Globe Awards ceremony.