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Oprah Winfrey
- Oprah Winfrey, the much-beloved media mogul, is "intrigued by the idea" of a presidential bid, but does not currently have plans to run, according to her close friend, Gayle King.
- "I do think it's a very intriguing thing that she had never considered," King said on CBS on Tuesday morning.
Oprah Winfrey, the much-beloved media mogul, is "intrigued by the idea" of a presidential bid, but does not currently have plans to run, according to her close friend and "CBS This Morning" host Gayle King.
Winfrey sparked 2020 speculation after delivering a powerful speech at the Golden Globe awards on Sunday night, weaving stories of racial and gender injustice into a hopeful narrative that many argued read like a political stump speech.
"Being in that room was electrifying. It was the right person giving the right speech at the right time," King said on CBS on Tuesday morning. "She wanted that moment to be more than women wearing black dresses of solidarity. She really did want to speak to young girls around the country. She really did want to say, 'enough already.'"
But King, who said she talked with Winfrey late into the night on Monday, insisted that her friend did not intend for the speech to indicate any political ambitions.
"I absolutely don't think that her position has changed," King said. "I do think she's intrigued by the idea. I also know after years of watching the Oprah show, you always have a right to change your mind."
King said that Winfrey had never before given much thought to a political career, but that the conversation and encouragement she provoked with Sunday's speech had piqued her interest.
"I'm not trying to be cute here, or be mysterious, but I do think it's a very intriguing thing that she had never considered," King said.
Winfrey shot down the idea of a possible presidential bid in October, telling King on CBS that there would be "no running for office of any kind for me." But the media mogul told Bloomberg last March that Trump's election made her rethink ruling out the possibility.
"I thought, 'Oh gee, I don't have the experience, I don't know enough.' And now I'm thinking, 'Oh. Oh!'" she said.
Winfrey was a strong supporter of former President Barack Obama's 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns and she endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016, but her political positions are largely unknown.