As part of his campaign’s effort to woo young voters, men in particular, Donald Trump gave another cringeworthy interview to a young, right-wing video streamer on Tuesday.
Trump met with Adin Ross, who has used his popular platform to promote people like neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes and who was banned from Twitch for "hateful conduct" after his stream featured an unmoderated chat filled with racial slurs. The fawning Trump interview came as Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign has had a surge in popularity with young voters. And Trump’s appearance with Ross came days after conservatives launched a $20 million voter outreach effort designed to mobilize young, male voters using the pro-Trump podcast “Full Send,” the Ultimate Fighting Championship and other Trump-friendly platforms.
Interviews like these appear to be part of an effort to establish an air of coolness around Trump. And it's somewhat similar to what has been done with Nayib Bukele, El Salvador’s self-described “coolest dictator in the world,” who is frequently touted by MAGA Republicans these days.
So what did Trump do to attract the youngs on Tuesday? He walked out to a 50 Cent song; he called antisemitic rapper Ye a “complicated” but “really nice guy”; and he claimed rapper Young Thug (aka Jeffrey Williams) has been treated “unfairly” by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is trying a RICO case against Willams — as well as that separate RICO case against Trump you may have heard about (both Williams and Trump have pleaded not guilty).
There’s ample reporting about the Trump campaign’s attempts to align itself with rappers to lure young, Black male voters, and this seemed a continuation of those dubious efforts. As I’ve written in the past, Trump has tried to use the Young Thug trial to curry favor with Black men while sowing distrust toward Willis, who he has claimed is “racist” against him. (Williams' lawyer, for the record, has rejected similarities between that trial and the 2020 election cases.)
Continuing his disturbing deference to authoritarian figures, Trump praised Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro for purportedly making that country “safer than our cities.” Meanwhile, Maduro is currently refusing to leave office after the opposition and outside observers challenged his claim that he won re-election late last month, sparking mass protests that Venezuelan authorities have responded to with deadly force. I wouldn’t call that “safe.”
Trump also did a herky-jerky dance while telling voters he’d “keep TikTok” if elected, reaffirming his latest stance on the app, the one he appears to have taken after a right-wing billionaire investor in TikTok endorsed his campaign. (Harris, who recently launched her own TikTok account, hasn’t said whether she supports the legislation, signed by President Joe Biden, to divest the company of its Chinese ownership.)
Ross also presented Trump with a Cybertruck and a Rolex watch, which might have run afoul of campaign finance rules.
In all of these interactions, Trump looked like a 78-year-old candidate who is grasping at straws to seem young and hip. Trump is literally dancing for votes now. This is only the beginning of the MAGA youth voter mobilization effort. They have millions of dollars to spend, and I expect much more awkward dancing to follow.