- The Washington Times - Thursday, October 11, 2018

Entertainer and entrepreneur Kanye West’s meeting with President Trump on Thursday left MSNBC’S Stephanie Ruhle and Ali Velshi so aghast that they called it an “assault on our White House.”

The man behind “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” had plenty to say from the Oval Office this week, but his presence next to the commander in chief has left pundits stunned. The “MSNBC Live” duo derided his one-on-one policy discussion roughly 48 hours after CNN panelist Tara Setmayer framed Mr. West as a “token Negro.”

“That was bonkers,” Mr. Velshi said after Mr. West talked about stop-and-frisk policies, his “MAGA” hat, prison reform, gun rights, and his “love” for the president’s unabashed masculinity.

“If you think you’re going to get a thoughtful play-by-play and political analysis you’re not because that was an assault on our White House,” replied Ms. Ruhle.

“You can’t even analyze some of that stuff that was said. … That was crazy. That was bonkers,” Mr. Velshi said.

Mr. West told reporters that Mr. Trump is on a “hero’s journey” to keep America thriving and would have him as an entertainment industry ally along the way.


SEE ALSO: MSNBC anchors Ruhle, Velshi: Voters ‘selfishly’ expect Second Amendment rights to ‘stay the same’


He added that Mr. Trump exudes a kind of “male energy” that he didn’t experience growing up.

“My dad and my mom separated so there was not a lot of male energy in my home and also I’m married to a family where, you know, there’s not a lot of male energy,” he said. “It’s beautiful though. … The liberal will try and control a black person through the concept or racism because they know that we are very proud, emotional people. So when I say I like Trump to someone that’s liberal they’ll say, ’oh, but he’s racist.’”

• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.

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