Bill O’Reilly Defends Comments That Slaves Who Built White House Were Well-Fed

Bill O’Reilly Defends Comments That Slaves Who Built White House Were Well-Fed

Bill O’Reilly just can’t seem to STFU!

The Faux News host recently justified the use of slavery because he claimed that they were “well-fed and had decent lodging” when the White House was built. Yes, in real life. According toDeadline:

Facing a firestorm of criticism, Bill O’Reilly opened his show on Fox News tonight by addressing the Michelle Obama DNC speech-themed Tuesday segment about the building of the White House that had gotten him in hot water. He defended his comments about the slaves being well treated and called his critics “smear merchants.”

“As any honest historian knows, in order to keep slaves and free laborers strong, the Washington administration provided meat, bread and other staples, also decent lodging on the grounds of the new presidential building,” O’Reilly said. “That is a fact. Not a justification, not a defense of slavery.”

The O’Reilly Factor host said he did a little fact-checking of the first lady’s remarks and found that slaves did in fact work on the White House from 1792 to 1800, along with whites, immigrants. and others, but he says they were “well-fed and had decent lodgings.” He also added that the federal government stopped the use of slave labor in 1802, two years after the White House was built.