Showtime to Sarah Palin: Sacha Baron Cohen never pretended to be a disabled veteran on Who Is America?

Variety

Palin made headlines last week when she accused Cohen of interviewing her posing as a disabled U.S. veteran, which has led to accusations of stolen valor. A conservative street artist responded over the weekend by putting up a billboard and ads accusing Cohen of "a touch of stolen valor" on Who Is America? Showtime this afternoon released a statement explaining that, no, Cohen didn't pose as a veteran: “There has been widespread misinformation over the past week about the character of Billy Wayne Ruddick Jr., Ph.D., performed by Sacha Baron Cohen on the Showtime comedy series Who Is America? Baron Cohen did not present himself as a disabled veteran, and viewers nationwide who watched the premiere on Sunday can now attest to that. In Sunday’s episode, during an interview with Senator Bernie Sanders, Baron Cohen in character as Dr. Ruddick was asked by the Senator if he is disabled, and he stated that he is not and uses a mobility scooter to conserve his energy. In addition, Baron Cohen never presented himself as a veteran of the U.S. military to former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin during the booking process or during the filming of her interview, and contrary to her claims he did not appear in a wheelchair. In both the interview with Governor Palin and the interview with Senator Sanders, he did not wear military apparel of any kind.”

ALSO:

• U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher claims he was unfairly edited in “Kinder Guardian” video: "This was fraud…And its intention was to deceive the American people for political purposes"
• Who Is America? should be shocking, but it confirms how trollish American politics have become
• Who Is America?'s premiere was must-see even though three of the four segments were subpar