Arts & Entertainment
Rosie O’Donnell faces backlash for offering to pay GOP senators
conservatives believe the comedian’s tweet is illegal


(Screenshot via YouTube)
Rosie O’Donnell is facing backlash from conservatives for offering $2 million to GOP senators if they voted no on the reformed tax bill.
O’Donnell made the offer on Tuesday on Twitter to Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) ahead of the tax bill vote. Both Collins and Flake voted yes for the bill, which passed on Wednesday morning.
“so how about this i promise to give 2 million dollars to senator susan collins and 2 million to senator jeff flake. if they vote NO NO I WILL NOT KILL AMERICANS FOR THE SUOER RICHDM me susan DM me jeff no shit 2 million cash each,” O’Donnell tweeted.
so how about this
i promise to give
2 million dollars to senator susan collins
and 2 million to senator jeff flakeif they vote NO
NO I WILL NOT KILL AMERICANS
FOR THE SUOER RICHDM me susan
DM me jeffno shit
2 million
cash
each— ROSIE (@Rosie) December 20, 2017
O’Donnell also addressed Collins directly posting a photo of Collins’ family.
“do u think your family is proud of u @sennatorcollins woman – mother – grandmother – sister – daughter u have betrayed us all,” O’Donnell tweeted.
susan – 2 million dollars cash
call if u want to negotiatedo u think your family is proud of u @sennatorcollins
woman – mother – grandmother – sister – daughter
u have betrayed us alldear god
ask for forgiveness
redeem ur soul tomorrow #NOTSEXIST pic.twitter.com/wa0QcMXNk2— ROSIE (@Rosie) December 20, 2017
In another tweeted O’Donnell posts, “i will HAPPILY pay any GOP senator 2 million dollars to vote NO they have been paid obviously.”
i will HAPPILY pay any GOP senator 2 million dollars
to vote NOthey have been paid
obviously— ROSIE (@Rosie) December 20, 2017
The Hill notes that under 18 U.S. Code § 201 it is illegal “to offer money to public officials with the intent to influence official acts, like voting on a bill” but whether her tweets were meant to be serious is unclear. However, O’Donnell did retweet comments from people who did not take her tweets seriously.
The dear @Rosie makes a joke about bribing the @GOP to make a point, and the Alt-reich goes bat shit crazy.
It’s like they don’t have humor in Russia.
— Pesach ‘Pace’ Lattin ⏺ (@pacelattin) December 20, 2017
After Rosie O’Donnell’s public attempt to bribe Susan Collins or Jeff Flake with 2 million each, she should probably expect calls from other politicians telling her the proper and usual way to offer bribes quietly and secretly.
— @PaulMicRogers (@PaulMicRogers) December 20, 2017
Other people wanted O’Donnell to face legal action.
Rosie O’Donnell tried to bribe Susan Collins and Jeff Flake with 2 million dollars each to vote “NO” on the Tax Bill.
Lock Her Up! pic.twitter.com/y3bkdkCbnj
— Based Monitored??? (@BasedMonitored) December 20, 2017
Conservative websites The Daily Wire and The Federalist believe that O’Donnell’s tweets do, in fact, break the law.
The New York Daily News reports that FBI officials “neither confirm nor deny investigations” into the matter.

The fourth annual Equality Prince William Pride was held at the Harris Pavilion in Manassas, Va. on Saturday, May 17.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)






















The Washington Blade held its 18th annual Summer Kickoff Party in Rehoboth Beach, Del., on Friday, May 16. Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer spoke along with State Sen. Russ Huxtable, CAMP Rehoboth Executive Director Kim Leisey, Blade Editor Kevin Naff, and Clear Space Theatre Managing Director Joe Gfaller. The event raises funds for the Steve Elkins Memorial Fellowship in Journalism, which was awarded to AU student Abigail Hatting.
(Washington Blade photos by Daniel Truitt)



















In some fowl fiction foreshadowing, a gay-owned chicken joint has come home to roost on U Street, taking a page from the chicken window subplot on the HBO show “Looking.”
Last Friday, Lucky Pollo – much more than just a takeout window – stretched its wings atop the busy nightlife corner of 14th and U Streets NW.
Behind the poultry production place is Zach Renovátes, a D.C.-based nightlife operator and managing partner of LGBTQ venues Bunker and District Eagle, as well as the LGBTQ event production company KINETIC Presents.
Renovátes opened Bunker in February 2023 and District Eagle in January of this year. Lucky Pollo is the third in his growing gay empire, though this time there are noshes.
“Lucky Pollo was meant to be fun and a little provocative,” Renovátes said.
Based around its Peruvian-style rotisserie chicken, Lucky Pollo is a quick-service restaurant boasting a small menu of poultry and sides. Renovátes says that the dishes are deeply rooted in Peruvian culinary tradition, “a playful experience alongside seriously good food.”
Lucky Pollo’s signature chicken is steeped in a dozen-plus-spice marinade for 24 hours. The meat is then slow-roasted, rotisserie-style, over oak-wood charcoal. Chicken options include quarter, half, and whole.
Helming the kitchen at Lucky Pollo is Chef Luis Herrera, who brings Peruvian recipes passed down through three generations, including his grandmother Laura’s original creations.

Beyond the full bird, the menu features Peruvian-inspired sides like yuca fries (“I personally love these,” says Renovátes) and fried plantains, as well as comfort classics such as mac and cheese and mashed potatoes, and bowls, wraps, and salads. Herrera oversees development of the multiple sauces (including staff favorite, the “secret green sauce”), crafted in-house using traditional Peruvian ingredients.
Lucky Pollo, in its streetside perch, is an independent concept from District Eagle, open to the public and staying open late (3 a.m. on weekends) to serve both nightlife guests and the wider U Street crowd hungry for late-night bites. However, just beyond the kitchen, tucked in the back lies a vintage 1950s candy machine—labeled “Out of Order,” which serves as the door leading to subterranean District Eagle.
Renovátes notes that when District Eagle is open, security staff will maintain a strict two-line policy, ensuring that those seeking meat to eat will not get entwined with those looking to gain access to District Eagle.
Lucky Pollo unites the need for sustenance with the idea of a bit of fortune, given its motto, “Get Lucky” and the whimsical brand mascot: a leather-booted chicken perched on a horseshoe. Renovátes and his District Eagle business partner had always been interested in opening a restaurant, and the Lucky Pollo space was indeed lucky: It already came with a functional kitchen. Plus, he says, the nearby fast-casual places around 14th and U streets “don’t offer a lot of quality options,” so opening the chicken spot “was a no-brainer.”
The space, designed by NYC creative Jasin Cadic, blends theatrical street-art-style vibes with Keith Haring-inspired wall prints, neon signs, and ceiling-hung chicken figurines —”some edgy, some sweet,” says Renovátes —creating an immersive, playful atmosphere. Lucky Pollo and District Eagle maintain separate amenities for their respective customers.
Lucky Pollo opened last week with a competition to devour a whole rotisserie chicken in the fastest time, with the winner earning $1,000 and a framed spot on the restaurant’s “Wall of Fame.” The opening also featured other games and prizes, and a full crowd spilling out the door.
“We want it to be a great place to eat, but also serve as a playful front for something completely unexpected.” Renovátes says.
On weekends especially, he jokes, the motto will be, ‘Come for the chicken, stay for the cock.’”