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Vince Vaughn chatted up Donald Trump and Melania at a college football game — and people have opinions

Vince Vaughn said hello to President Donald Trump and Melania Trump at Monday’s college football national championship — and social media has been stirred up over it.

The brief exchange took place in New Orleans, where the Louisiana State University Tigers bested the Clemson University Tigers. The Old School and Wedding Crashers actor sat next to the president and first lady and had what appeared to be a pleasant exchange, mostly with him. The men then shook hands and off Vaughn went.

The clip quickly made its way to social media for dissection and debate — and Vaughn was soon trending on Twitter.

Not unlike the stir made when Ellen DeGeneres sat with George W. Bush at a football game last year, there were opinions — perhaps more this time, given that the president is facing an impeachment trial.

Those most critical of Vaughn for appearing chummy with the president called for his cancellation.

But others, including Dana Loesch, soon stepped up to criticize people who had a problem with it.

And then, because it’s Twitter, there were soon critics of reports of the criticism.

Thankfully, there were also jokes. So many jokes.

In the wake of the controversy, a rep for Vaughn told People magazine that he and Trump did not attend the championship together. Instead, they “met this evening at the game briefly.”

As for Vaughn’s politics, he told Playboy in 2015 that he’s a libertarian, saying, “Trusting the federal government to know what we need and to run things well feels like a bad idea... [Adults] should be allowed to decide what’s in their interest, what makes sense for them, unless they commit fraud or physical force or take someone’s property.”

Jan 13, 2020; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Movie actor Vince Vaughn greets First Lady Melania Trump and President Donald J. Trump in the College Football Playoff national championship game between the Clemson Tigers and the LSU Tigers at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Vince Vaughn greets first lady Melania Trump and President Donald Trump at the college football national championship game between the Clemson Tigers and the LSU Tigers on Jan. 13. (Photo: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)

In a 2015 interview, Vaughn said schools should have more guns to protect from mass shootings. He said, “Banning guns is like banning forks in an attempt to stop making people fat. Taking away guns, taking away drugs, the booze, it won’t rid the world of criminality.”

And while he looked friendly with Trump, Vaughn backed Republican Rand Paul in the 2016 election rather than the president. Vaughn has also publicly supported Ron Paul, giving a speech on his behalf when he was a Republican presidential candidate in 2012.

In October, DeGeneres was caught on camera sitting next to former President George Bush at an NFL game. She was criticized at the time, but defended herself — and her friendship — on the show.

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