Donald Trump insists he likes Kanye West, but is not involved in the rapper's 2020 presidential campaign.
POTUS made the claims during a White House press briefing Wednesday, shortly after the New York Times published a report about GOP operatives who were actively helping West get on general election ballots. The Times pointed to specific GOP-affiliated individuals who were reportedly aiding West's attempts to gain ballot access in battleground states like Wisconsin, Missouri, Arkansas, and Illinois. The report fueled theories that West was running a spoiler campaign that would pull votes from the presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden, which would effectively help Trump's re-election.
The president was asked if he had any knowledge of Republicans' attempts to help West secure a spot on the ballots. Though Trump said no, he made it clear he likes the rapper and his wife, Kim Kardashian.
"I get along with him very well," Trump said about West, before referencing Kardashian's criminal justice efforts. "I like him, I like his wife ... his wife recommended certain people to get out of prison. They were in prison for a long time. A long, long time. It should've never happened ... [Kim's] got a good heart, very good heart. And I like Kanye very much, but no, I have nothing to do with him getting on the ballot. We'll have to see what happens. We'll see if he gets on the ballot. But I'm not involved."
West announced his candidacy on the Fourth of July, after years of teasing his campaign. Days after his announcement, the rapper said he no longer supports Trump's re-election: "It looks like one big mess to me," he told Forbes about the president's administration. "I don’t like that I caught wind that he hid in the bunker."
