A name you might not expect to hear repeated (over and over again) at a Presidential impeachment hearing is that of an international rap sensation. But, in a Trump impeachment, anything is possible — including dragging A$AP Rocky.
As trials continue (with Trump absent thus far), testimonies continue to make reference to the president’s involvement in Rocky’s Swedish jail scandal. Long story short, after Rocky was arrested in Sweden and charged with assault earlier in 2019, Kanye West and Kim Kardashian lobbied for Trump to free him from jail. And, we know Trump and Kanye go way back. But throughout the course of Rocky’s jailing, Trump often advocated for his freedom.
Despite the fact that the President’s phone calls with his officials about the whole Rocky situation logically have zilch to do with the current impeachment inquiry, the rapper’s name continues to circulate the courtroom, with two hearing references so far. First, Rocky was dragged into the mess in last week’s hearing by Department of State official David Holmes, who talked about one of the key witnesses in the case, Gordon Sondland. As US ambassador to the European Union, Sondland is there to untangle the meaning of relations between Trump and Ukraine — and his name, too, is getting dragged in every direction, particularly following his Wednesday testimony.
After Holmes mentioned a conversation between Trump and Sondland about A$AP Rocky and the Kardashians, it was no surprise (but still strange) when Sondland talked about Rocky in his opening statement on November 20. Sondland said if he remembers correctly, he thinks he and Trump “primarily discussed A$AP Rocky” during a call in question.
During the hearing, it was said that Sondland told Trump to “let [Rocky] get sentenced, play the racism card, give him a ticker-tape when he comes home,” according to Holmes. But, this doesn’t exactly explain how A$AP got tangled in this whole impeachment mess and what the motive is behind all these questions, does it?
It’s actually a classic Trump move: the president continues touting his good relationships with black celebrities this year, leveraging this situation to parade the fact that he and Rocky could be buddies (spoiler alert: they’re probably not). But this name dropping situation feels eerily similar. If anything is clear, it seems that the President and his posse are hooked on staying relevant in the world of celebrity.
As House Democrats continue to determine whether or not Trump is guilty of withholding aid to Ukraine and impeding in the 2020 election, who knows what names will be dropped in.
Amb. Sondland: "Other witnesses have recently shared recollection of overhearing the call. For the most part, I have no reason to doubt their accounts. It is true that the president speaks loudly at times and it is also true — I think we primarily discussed A$AP Rocky." pic.twitter.com/D5hOwRQEBT
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) November 20, 2019
It’s important to clarify, though, that A$AP Rocky is in no way related to the impeachment case. However, Trump and his people just can’t seem to stop mentioning the rapper. Perhaps he thinks it’s a clever way of trying to deflect. As people on Twitter keep saying, Rocky being mentioned in an impeachment hearing is peak 2019. Either way, maybe the rapper will change the lyrics to “I love bad testimonies, that’s my f**kin’ problem.”
An ASAP Rocky and Kardashians reference in a Congressional impeachment hearing is peak 2019.
— Bärí A. Williams (@BariAWilliams) November 20, 2019
I'm just waiting on the rapture, at this point.
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