Joe Rogan Addresses Backlash Resulting From His Bernie Sanders Endorsement

Comedian Joe Rogan received backlash for his past comments after saying he would likely be voting for Bernie Sanders, and he addressed the situation on a recent episode of his podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience.

Speaking to comedian Mark Normand in a YouTube clip of the episode, Rogan said it’s clear what the purpose of the backlash is.

“They’re using me to make him look bad, that he supports me, or that he used my endorsement,” he said.

Rogan was attacked as being homophobic, racist, and transphobic, with many critics pointing to his past remarks to support such criticisms. Per Reclaim the Net, Rogan noted how the attacks mirrored the comments he made in the clip in which he endorsed Sanders.

“What’s really funny is that the thing that I said in the video was exactly what they did. I said, if you just take the worst aspects of someone, take out everything else, magnify it, and you can paint them out to be a real piece of sh*t,” he said.

The 52-year-old MMA enthusiast slammed CNN in particular, noting that one of their articles cited one of his comments on transexuals but took it out of context from the full conversation.

“What was fascinating to me was that these people, like f*cking CNN, printed something saying that I was homophobic and transphobic and there’s a clip that they’re using that’s completely out of context.”

Rogan claims that his controversial comment is from a clip in which he discusses a transgender fighter who was a man before transitioning into a woman. She reportedly did not disclose her transition and gave one of her biologically female opponent’s severe facial injuries. According to Rogan, his comments were only speaking on athletics — not the gender identity of the average person.

During the recent conversation with Normand, Rogan also acknowledged that it wasn’t all hate that was directed at him for his Sanders endorsement. He said he also received “overwhelming” and “heartwarming” positive support, claiming it has come from fellow comics, scientists, as well as people who have come on his podcast.

As The Inquisitr reported, progressive commentator Kyle Kulinski defended Rogan and noted the wide range of guests on his show, from Alex Jones to himself and Cornel West, as well as the open conversations he has with these people.

Kulinski pointed to Rogan’s authenticity and claims it is the reason his endorsement of Sanders matters more than his establishment media critics.