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Uber suspends driver after ‘lefty’ actors film confrontation about politics

It’s not clear how the confrontation started.

Photo of Audra Schroeder

Audra Schroeder

rena sofer and tara strong

Uber has reportedly suspended one of its drivers, after two women filmed a confrontation with him on Election Day.

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Actors Tara Strong (voice actor for Teen Titans Go! and Ben 10) and Rena Sofer (The Bold and the Beautiful, 24) were canvassing for Democrat Harley Rouda in Orange County on Tuesday, when they got into a heated discussion about politics with their Uber driver.

In a two-minute clip posted by Strong, she and Sofer argue with the driver, who calls them “lefties” and mentions “mind control.” One of the women says the driver sounds “like Trump’s mouthpiece.” The context of the discussion isn’t clear, since it appears to start in the middle of the argument. Strong said she had a longer video of the incident, and in a reply to another tweet, said that the driver “called us demons & propaganda crazy lefties 20 min before I began filming.”

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Strong deleted the original tweet about the exchange, in which she stated that the driver “almost killed” them “because we are Democrats,” but followed it up with one directed at President Donald Trump and conservative commentator Ben Shapiro. Strong accused the driver of being one of Trump’s “crazy sycophant followers.”

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Sofer defended herself over comments that she was using her privilege as a celebrity to get the driver fired, and comments about his status as an American citizen.

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Uber Support responded to Strong yesterday, claiming it would “take a closer look.” An Uber representative told Yahoo that the driver has been suspended while the incident is being investigated.

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In a statement, Uber said: “Our expectation is that riders and drivers respect each other’s differences. Disparaging language and discrimination are never OK. We are in touch with the riders and will take the appropriate action.”

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The Daily Dot