Alert the Beygency! Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani had some harsh words for Beyoncé‘s part of the Super Bowl 50 halftime show on Sunday, February 7. Appearing on Fox & Friends the morning after the big game, Giuliani, 71, slammed Bey for sending what he perceived as an anti-police message.
“I thought it was really outrageous that she used it as a platform to attack police officers, the people who protect her and protect us and keep us alive,” he said on Monday when asked about Bey’s Super Bowl appearance.
![Beyonce performs onstage during the Pepsi Super Bowl 50 Halftime Show.](/wp-content/uploads/beyonce-performance-zoom-df0a6551-a985-42a4-aa99-2a7b93c17c66.jpg?w=1000&quality=55&strip=all)
The pop superstar, 34, debuted her new single, “Formation,” over the weekend, along with a music video containing references to Hurricane Katrina and the Black Lives Matter movement. Her performance at the Super Bowl was similarly charged, as she was joined by a squad of backup dancers styled in what appeared to be a nod to the Black Panthers.
“What we should be doing in the African American community, and all communities, is build up respect for police officers and focus on the fact that when something does go wrong, OK, we’ll work on that,” the one-time presidential hopeful said on Fox & Friends. “But the vast majority of police officers risk their lives to keep us safe.”
He went on to chide the people behind the halftime show, saying they should look for more “wholesome” acts.
![Beyoncé performs during the Pepsi Super Bowl 50 halftime show.](/wp-content/uploads/beyonce-performs-zoom-4cf6a402-d4c6-4806-9c51-30cbc1808eb4.jpg?w=1000&quality=55&strip=all)
“Just figure out who you’re putting on. I mean this is a political position, she’s probably going to take advantage of it,” he said. “You’re talking to middle America when you have the Super Bowl, so if you can have entertainment, let’s have, you know, decent wholesome entertainment and not use it as a platform to attack the people who, you know, put their lives at risk to save us.”
Giuliani didn’t just take issue with Beyoncé’s part of the show, though. He wasn’t a fan of any part of the spectacle, which also featured Coldplay and Bruno Mars.
“I think it’s outrageous. The halftime show, I thought, was ridiculous anyway. I didn’t know what the heck it was — a bunch of people, like, bouncing around. … It was terrible,” he said. “I actually don’t even know why we have this. I mean, this is football, not Hollywood.”