Ellen DeGeneres Tells Matt Lauer Why Donald Trump Is Not Welcome on Her Show (Video)

Television By TooFab Staff |

Ellen DeGeneres welcomed Matt Lauer to her show Thursday with open arms, but she won't be doing the same for President Donald Trump.

During Lauer's guest appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," he flipped the script and interviewed host DeGeneres. To the "Today" show host's surprise, the audience stuck around for the taping.

When asked if she would ever want Trump to appear on her show, DeGeneres swiftly told Lauer: "No."

"I'm not going to change his mind," DeGeneres said. "He's against everything that I stand for. We need to look at someone else who looks different than us and believes in something that we don't believe in and still accept them and still let them have their rights."

DeGeneres admitted she does not know the POTUS very well, but she said she filmed a bit of "Celebrity Apprentice" in New York with Trump when he hosted the reality show. However, she hasn't spoken to Trump since he ran for or became president.

As viewers and fans know, DeGeneres is no stranger to interviewing political figures. The Obamas frequented the "Ellen" show many times over the past years. Former First Lady Michelle Obama even went on a hilarious CVS run with the talk show host in a comedy sketch.

Former presidential candidate and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also made a few appearances on "Ellen" during her campaign. Her Democratic primary challenger, Bernie Sanders, also spent a little QT with DeGeneres.

Lauer also asked DeGeneres about her retirement plans, to which she responded: "I have so much fun doing the show right now, and some days are more fun than others, but even on my least favorite fun day, it's the greatest day job in the world."

Of the 20th anniversary of her coming out on national television, DeGeneres said: "I look back on it now and I think, 'I wish I would've done it sooner. I wish I hadn't waited so long.' But it was what it was."

"The biggest thing was that I lost my career," she added. "For three years, I couldn't work. I was not offered one thing and I was running out of money and I didn't know if I was gonna work again. I was 45 years old, and I was like, 'This doesn't look good.'"

Though her initial feeling was anger, DeGeneres said the situation taught her compassion and that she was "strong enough to start all over again."

"It was the greatest thing that's ever happened to me," she said.