Oprah Not Up for Promoting Palin—Yet

Winfrey denies banning Republican VP candidate from show; says no active campaigners will appear before election

By Gina Serpe Sep 05, 2008 5:02 PMTags
Oprah Winfrey, Barack ObamaJemal Countess/WireImage.com

Newly minted veep wannabe Sarah Palin's acceptance speech may have drawn impressive ratings at the Republican National Convention, but don't look for her hopping up and down on Oprah Winfrey's couch anytime soon.

Despite a Drudge Report story this morning claiming a political battle was brewing behind the scenes of Winfrey's daytime talk show, with staff members pushing for the big O to invite Palin to Chicago for sit-down, Winfrey herself has issued a speedy denial.

"This item in today's Drudge Report is categorically untrue," she said in a statement. "There has been absolutely no discussion about having Sarah Palin on my show."

Which is not to say such a discussion may not happen in the future...like, say, after Nov. 4.

While Winfrey has been no stranger to the presidential race, publicly supporting Barack Obama and featuring him on her show twice in recent years, he has not appeared since announcing his candidacy.

"At the beginning of this presidential campaign when I decided that I was going to take my first public stance in support of a candidate, I made the decision not to use my show as a platform for any of the candidates," Winfrey said.

"I agree that Sarah Palin would be a fantastic interview, and I would love to have her on after the campaign is over."