Kirstie Alley Sparks Backlash After Saying She's Voting For Donald Trump Because He's 'Not A Politician'

Actress Kirstie Alley sparked a backlash after declaring on Twitter that she will back President Donald Trump for a second term in November's election.

Alley, a longtime Trump supporter, took to the platform on Saturday night to tell her followers that she will vote for the president again in 2020 because "he's NOT a politician."

"I'm voting for @realDonaldTrump because he's NOT a politician. I voted for him 4 years ago for this reason and shall vote for him again for this reason," the 69-year-old actress, best known for her role in Cheers and the Look Who's Talking film series, tweeted Saturday night.

"He gets things done quickly and he will turn the economy around quickly. There you have it folks there you have it."

Alley's name was trending early Sunday after people criticized her for her continued support of the president, despite his mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 219,000 people in the U.S.

"How could anyone be so indifferent to the death and suffering Trump has inflicted on the nation?" a Twitter user wrote in response to Alley's tweet.

Others noted that Trump is a politician, despite Alley's assertion. "The President of the United States is, in fact, a politician," Don Moynihan, a professor at Georgetown University, wrote.

"Granted, not one with basic skills of coalition-building or managing a government, but he is a politician in the worst possible meaning of the term: empty promises, exploiting fear and sowing hatred."

Some Twitter users also noted that Trump "hasn't gotten anything done."

"But he hasn't gotten anything done. I voted for him 4 years ago too and realized my mistake and voted for Joe Biden," David Weissman, whose Twitter bio says he is a former Trump supporter, replied. "We can dialogue respectfully if you like and I won't force your vote but just hope you think about it."

Others joked that they preferred Cheers star Shelley Long over Alley, prompting Long's name to also trend on the platform.

"Shelly Long was way funnier than you," director Judd Apatow tweeted.

"Breaking: Shelley Long quitting is no longer dumbest decision made by a "Cheers" actor," Danny Zuker added.

Not long after her original tweet, Alley tweeted that she had been bombarded with criticism and called "really nasty names" after sharing her support for the president.

"Don't think I've ever seen so much name-calling in my life," she wrote. "Definitely not on my site [sic] here anyway I guess I'm not allowed to have a viewpoint without being called a really nasty names by what I'm going to suppose are really nasty people."

In another tweet, she defended her decision to support Trump, writing: "Stick to your guns. Not always easy to be under fire but always easier than going against your own integrity."

Earlier this month, Alley—a reported member of the Church of Scientology—appeared to embrace the QAnon conspiracy theory in tweets, according to Los Angeles magazine.

Alley could not immediately be reached for additional comment.