RELATED: Is Kanye West really running for President in 2020?
Kanye West for President? The notion might have seemed like a joke when Yeezy announced his presidential intentions at last year’s MTV VMAs, but, since then, he’s given a number of (sometimes cryptic) statements that appear to reinforce his desire to run. Today, the Kanye West for President rumor mill got another churn, thanks to a long series of tweets that Kanye shared.
The “Kanye West for President” idea appeared to be nothing more than a brief flash in the pop culture pan, capped off by a New Yorker cover illustration that toasted the idea of Kanye pulling off a defeat of President Donald Trump in 2020. Kanye himself didn’t help matters at the VMAs by acknowledging that he was high as a kite during his acceptance speech for the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. Wife Kim Kardashian claimed that Kanye was serious, though, and the notion has cropped up from time to time in the ensuing months, particularly as the 2016 presidential race has gotten more and more attention.
So it was perhaps unsurprising that Kanye, who has been unusually active on Twitter of late, made further intimations toward a 2020 presidential run this afternoon, while in the middle of a long string of tweets about the economy, money, and hard work in general. You can check out Kanye’s Twitter feed to see the whole thing, which is several dozens of tweets long; here’s the relevant “Kanye West for President” bit:
I have a friend who works really hard and makes $370 dollars a day…
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
Her son just got in a really good school and his textbooks are like $400 dollars each …
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
I mean, his mom has to work 2 days just to afford 1 book for her son …
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
she’s giving everything she has to make sure her son has a better future…
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
Steve Jobs wanted to lower the cost of textbooks…
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
Education puts Americans into debt before they even get a chance to get started…
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
We have to lower the price of textbooks…
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
I’d rather teachers got paid more and books cost less … #2020
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 16, 2016
While Kanye certainly repeats worthwhile points about the absurd (and rising) cost of college textbooks, the often comically low pay college instructors receive, and the skyrocketing cost of a college education in general, he is a bit short-sighted about one thing. A wage of $370 per day is hardly working-class: a person who works five days per week at that rate makes $1,850 per week–or about $90,000 per year, assuming two or three weeks’ worth of unpaid vacation. That sort of money won’t insulate you from every cost associated with college, but it sure will help.
Then again, Kanye also recently claimed he’s $53 million in debt, so you can understand why money might be on his mind. In the meantime, we’ll have to wait a couple more years to see whether “Kanye West for President” moves past the meme stage and becomes a legitimate slogan.
(Photo credits: Kanye West for President via Instagram, Michael Wright / WENN.com)