Conservative members of the Congress are reportedly encouraging Kid Rock to run for a Tennessee House seat in the 2022 midterms.
Politico reported on Friday that “some MAGA members of Congress” are recruiting Kid Rock to run in Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District. The rapper and country music star, however, has given no indication that he is even thinking about running, although he did reportedly joke to one member of Congress who is pushing him to entry the fray that he wouldn’t rule it out because his Michigan “campaign” was so lucrative, according to Politico.
Kid Rock’s representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Rolling Stone.
Kid Rock has flirted with wading into politics since former President Trump took office, most notably by teasing a 2018 Senate run in Michigan. The musician sold “Kid Rock for U.S. Senate” merchandise, created a campaign website, and made headlines after infusing his concerts with politically charged exclamations. Rock ultimately didn’t run for office, though, and admitted it was just one big ploy to boost sales. “Fuck no, I’m not running for Senate, are you kidding me?” Rock told Howard Stern in October 2017. “Who couldn’t figure that out? I’m releasing a new album. I’m going on tour, too. Are you fucking shitting me?”
These comments apparently helped lead the Federal Election Commission to dismiss complaints about Kid Rock over his faux campaign. The government agency wrote then that Rock “does not appear to have taken even the most basic steps to become a candidate.”
The reported calls for him to run in 2022 come on the heels of his release of “We the People,” in which he uses a rhetorical hammer to profess his love for Trump by repeating “Let’s Go Brandon!” 13 times. The song drew praise from Tucker Carlson, who informed his viewers this week that the “all around good guy” musician will be the subject of a special episode of his show on Fox Nation, Fox News’s streaming service. Kid Rock just so happens to be launching a new tour in April.
Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District encompasses Nashville, where Rock owns an estate. Incumbent Democratic Rep. Jim Cooper has held the seat since 2003, but is retiring this year after Republicans in the state legislature controversially divided his district into three. “No one tried harder to keep our city whole,” Cooper said. “I explored every possible way, including lawsuits, to stop the gerrymandering and to win one of the three congressional districts that now divide Nashville. There’s no way, at least for me, in this election cycle.”
Trump, with whom Kid Rock says he had a friendly chat with on Wednesday, has already made an endorsement in the race, picking former State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus over the more overtly pro-Trump Robby Starbuck. The move pissed off some far-right figures. However, Trump has reportedly weighed the option of making multiple endorsements for the same seat — something that might be on the table should Kid Rock decide to actually cross the t’s and dot the i’s this time.
Source: Read Full Article