Chelsea Handler, the staunchly anti-Trump comedian and activist, told BuzzFeed News’ Profile on Sunday her dad "would be like Donald Trump if he could."
"I have an asshole for a father," she told Profile host Audie Cornish. "I yelled and screamed at him my whole life."
This motivated her decision in August to call out White House senior adviser Ivanka Trump for her silence on the Trump administration’s policy on family separations.
"To see that kind of behavior, with a lot of power, and a daughter who sits idly by when there are children in cages at the border — I mean, what land are we living in?" Handler said of Ivanka’s relationship to her father.
As for President Donald Trump himself?
"I want that man dragged out of the White House in his underwear with his little hairpiece flying around and the tape coming off and it landing in the Rose Garden," Handler said.
Handler’s critique of the Trump administration is part of her recent forays into activism at large.
The star announced in October last year that she was leaving her Netflix talk show Chelsea to focus on political engagement, saying that she was going to speak at colleges. She has also partnered with EMILY's List to help boost that group's effort to get more Democratic women who are pro–abortion rights elected to office.
On Sunday, Handler said that she believed the election of President Trump helped mobilize people around the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements.
"I think that we all realize what’s at stake and so people are really willing to stick their necks out and fight," she said.
The star once again defended former US senator Al Franken, of Minnesota, who resigned in December following sexual misconduct allegations. "I would love for Al Franken to run again," she said of the Democrat.
Other celebrities have faced criticism for using their platforms to push political views. But Handler dismissed such attacks as "a crock of shit."
"You don’t get to not have an opinion because you’re a celebrity — that doesn’t add up," she said on Sunday.
Rather, Handler said, celebrities have an obligation to lend their voices to political causes.
"You know it’s not just about fighting for yourself — it's about fighting for other people who don’t have the platforms to fight for themselves," she said.
Her own journey included an appearance at the Women’s March during the Sundance Film Festival in January 2017. Now, Handler said, she plans to focus on an upcoming book and Netflix series on a topical issue: white privilege.
"I intend for it to be very funny and I intend to hang myself out to dry," she said of the show. "I'm a perfect example of the American dream, if you're white and borderline pretty."