Conan O'Brien responds to criticism after Kennedy Center appearance following Trump takeover

O'Brien used his acceptance speech to address the Kennedy Center's leadership shake-up following Trump's ascendance to the chairmanship. He also thanked the Kennedy Center's former president Deborah Rutter and chairman David Rubenstein, as well as other staff members "who are worried about what the future might bring."

"Obviously for the last couple of months with the new administration, there's been some controversial stuff going on with the Kennedy Center," O'Brien said in this week's episode of his podcast, "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend." 

"There was a question of, 'Should I go? Should I not go?' And I felt like it was important to show up," O'Brien said on his show. 

"We were brought in under the old regime," he explained, adding that the old leadership of the Kennedy Center is "no longer there but we should honor their decision." 

"It was really lovely because the young people working at the Kennedy Center for years were delighted that we came," he said. "They don't know what their future is."

"They wrote a bit where Conan interviews Hitler, who comes on because he's embarrassed that he's being compared to Donald Trump," Silverman said. 

Fox News' Diana Stancy contributed to this report.