Trump: Kanye Shows GOP’s the Future of Black Voters

‘I get along with a lot of people frankly, but Kanye looks and he sees black unemployment at the lowest it’s been in the history of our country’

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President Trump said rappers like Kanye West and Chance the Rapper are showing that the Republican Party is the future home of black voters.

Trump’s comments came after Kanye West shocked the rap world by saying he “loves Trump.” After he came under criticism from other celebrities, Chance the Rapper tweeted, “Black people don’t have to be Democrats.”

“I have known Kanye a little bit and I get along with Kanye” Trump told Fox News in an interview Thursday. “Kanye looks and he sees black unemployment at the lowest it’s been in the history of our country, OK? He sees Hispanic unemployment at the lowest it’s been in the history of our country. He sees, by the way, female unemployment, women unemployment, the lowest it’s been in now almost 19 years. He sees that stuff and he’s smart."

"And he says, ‘You know what? Trump is doing a much better job than the Democrats did,’" Trump continued. 

Trump predicted black Americans will increasingly vote for Republicans in the years to come. 

"People don't realize, if you go back to the Civil War," black voters were predominantly Republican, Trump said. "Somehow it changed over the years and I will say, I really believe it's changing back."

"Remember I was going to get no black votes?" he continued. "I was going to get none? I got a lot, I got a lot of support. I should have gotten much more. Now in fact I use to go around saying, what do you have to lose? I would say that at speeches, remember? I would go into a stadium and talk about the African-American vote. I said the education is not good. The, obviously the law enforcement in your community, the crime is at levels nobody ever seen before. I would go through seven, 10 stats. I would say vote for me. What do you have to lose? Now they voted for me. Crime is way down. And really importantly, the unemployment picture is the best it's been in the history of our country for African-Americans."

Here's a transcript from the interview:

EARHARDT: “Mr. President, we want to get to Kanye West. He tweeted that he loves you, that you are his brother. And —“
TRUMP: “He’s got good taste.”
EARHARDT: “— the left goes ballistic. What’s your reaction?”
TRUMP: “Well, they do. You know, have known Kanye a little bit and I get along with Kanye. I get along with a lot of people frankly. But Kanye looks and he sees black unemployment at the lowest it’s been in the history of our country, OK? He sees Hispanic unemployment at the lowest it’s been in the history of our country. He sees, by the way, female unemployment, women unemployment, the lowest it’s been in now almost 19 years. He sees that stuff and he’s smart. And he says, ‘You know what? Trump is doing a much better job than the Democrats did.’ And by the way if they ever got in started putting back all of the rules and regulations where you can’t breathe where businesses go out of business, our country would be in big trouble. And had I not gotten elected, Hillary would have come in and she would have added more rules and regulations we would have been out of business because you saw what was happening. We were going down.”
DOOCY: “Right.”
KILMEADE: “Yeah. And couple of things on top of that, there’s a bigger picture, Kanye West comes out regardless of what he says he doesn’t have any personally against you, he likes you. Even though he doesn’t agree with everything. Then there’s other people in the black community, like Chance, the rapper comes out and says, black people don’t have to be Democrats. Have Republicans done a bad job ignoring the black community up until now?”
TRUMP: “You know I think it was a custom. People don’t realize, you know, if you go back to the Civil War the Republicans that really did the thing. Lincoln was a Republican. I mean, somehow it changed over the years and I will say, I really believe it’s changing back. Remember I was going to get no black votes? I was going to get none? Well, I got a lot, I got a lot of support. You know, I should have gotten much more. Now, in fact I use to go around saying, what do you have to lose? I would say that at speeches, remember? I would go into a stadium and talk about the African-American vote. I said the education is not good. The, obviously the law enforcement in your community, the crime is at levels that nobody ever seen before. You know, I would go through seven, ten stats. I’d say vote for me. What do you have to lose?”
DOOCY: “Right.”
TRUMP: “So now they voted for me. Crime is way down. And really importantly, the unemployment picture is the best it’s been in the history of our country for African-Americans.”

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