Donald Trump Adds His Two Cents To Oscars Controversy

"I think it's a tough situation."
Aaron P. Bernstein via Getty Images

As the controversy surrounding the lack of diversity among this year's Oscar nominees heats up with rumblings of a boycott, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has thrown in his two cents on the hot-button issue.

Now, one could argue that Trump -- a Razzie-winning actor who appeared in several films and hosted a reality competition show for 14 seasons -- is actually more qualified to weigh in on Hollywood than anything resembling the political sphere. And yet, Trump continues to prove he doesn't really know what he's talking about.

The 69-year-old, who was just endorsed by Sarah Palin, called in to "Fox and Friends" on Tuesday and was asked about his thoughts on Reverend Al Sharpton's call to boycott the ceremony.

"Well, I think it's a tough situation. I think it's really sad and Al [Sharpton] is just a guy who wants to get publicity for himself," he said before going on to reference "Clueless" actress Stacey Dash, who appeared on the show ahead of him and claimed we "need to get rid of channels like B.E.T. and the B.E.T. Awards where you're only awarded if you're black" if we want to eliminate segregation.

"I saw somebody on your show today say, 'Well, what do we do with B.E.T.' Black Entertainment, right? Because over there the whites don't get any nominations. And I thought it was an amazing interview actually. I never even thought of it from that standpoint," Trump said, adding that it "would certainly be nice if everyone was represented properly."

Trump went on to say that he's watched the Oscars over the years and has seen "numerous black actors and African American actors receive Academy Awards."

In reality, only 15 black actors and actresses have won awards in the four acting categories in the Academy's 88-year history.

Since the 2016 Oscar nominations were announced last week, many of Hollywood's biggest names including, Jada Pinkett Smith, Lupita Nyong'o, Spike Lee, David Oyelowo, George Clooney and Michael Moore, have spoken out about the lack of diversity. And the conversation continues to grow, as actor and singer Tyrese Gibson recently called for this year's host Chris Rock to step down.

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