(Written Spring 2016)

I love the spectacle that is election season, and engage in it with the same fervor and fanaticism that some would for the World Cup.

This cycle, however, is an anomoly. The entertaining, turbulent, and terrifying nature of it can be attributed to Donald Trump – the sexist and xenophobic reality star/billionaire who declared his candidacy in June 2015.

As the general election swiftly approaches and Trump continues to lead in the polls, it’s likely Trump will receive the Republication nomination. Unless a scandal comes to light hindering his campaign.

He has zero credibility or experience and is notorious for his unfiltered and controversial opinions and Twitter tirades. Sound familiar?

A little bit like Kanye West to me.

During the MTV Video Music Awards last August, West took the stage and passionately revealed he will be running for President of the United States in 2020. His statement was also met with cynicism and amusement. But why all the skepticism?

Kanye West is a charismatic and influential idealist who can get shit done.

He’s passionate. magnetic. enthusiastic. Uses his influence and platform to support causes he believes in. He is a philanthropist, artist, entrepreneur, and unlike Trump, has been on the right side of the issues for most of his career.

Here is my plea to Kanye West – let me run your campaign.

As your political advisor, I would not ask you to change. Kanye you’re the best. You do you. But I will refine your reputation, and soon enough the American public will see you in a new light. We have 4 years to put this together and let’s be honest: If Donald Trump can make it this far, so can West.

Layout his Political Philosophies

Like it or not Kanye West IS a political figure, and has been his entire career. In his first record College Dropout, he wrote out about education and student loan debt. In Late Registration, he addressed the crack epidemic of the 1980s, 2013s Yeezus is entirely political. He is outspoken and makes no compromises: the qualities we need in a leader that will warrant progressive change.

After doing extensive research, I have found many of Kanye Wests ideals on political topics:

Education: Kanye’s mother was a teacher, and fueled his lifelong sense of academic importance. On The College Dropout, Kanye detailed his complex feelings about leaving school at 20 to pursue his musical career. He founded the Dr. Donda West Foundation, which is named after his late mother, to combat illiteracy and low graduation rates, and to provide access to music education programs. Kanye believes that everyone should have access to affordable education.

“The system broken, the school’s closed, the prison’s open.” Power (2010)

Racism: “You know, with race it’s like, okay we know it’s racist people, we know that a lot of white men over the age of 60 are racist, we embrace that. But the world is moving. Ten years from now, 20 years from now, every person of color or female or any minority that comes into power will eventually shift it. You got the ozone layer, you got all this stuff, you see 100 years from now the entire world might be black. Just to even survive on the earth, period.” – Kanye West

LGBT Rights: In 2005, West came forward and asked the hip-hop community to stop the use of anti-gay slurs in songs. He was a pioneer, taking a stand against homophobia in an industry frequently criticized for perpetuating it.

“Everybody in Hip Hop discriminates against gay people. Matter of fact, the exact opposite word of ’Hip Hop,’ I think, is ’gay.’ You play a record and if it’s wack, ‘That’s gay, dog!. And I wanna just come on TV and just tell my rappers, just tell my friends, ‘Yo, stop it. That’s discrimination.”

Income Inequality: In 2011 Kanye visited the Occupy Wall Street protests, he was a big supporter, spiritually for the movement. He was there to stand with the people. He wasn’t there to make a statement, didn’t want to do any media at all. He was there in solidarity. He understands this idea about getting the money out of the government and letting the people govern. He wants to give power back to the people.

Class Division: “What good is anything that everyone can’t have? They think we’re done with racism. What about elitism? What about separatism? What about classism? You know what should cost $5,000? A car should be $5,000. And you know who should work on the car? The people who work on the $500,000 cars. All the best talent in the world needs to work for the people. I’m successful in learning about the beauty that is afforded rich people, but in learning that, being brought up middle-class, it’s something that is beating out of my chest.”

“Class is the new way to discriminate against people, to hold people down, to hold people in their place based on where their kids go to school, how much money they make, what they drive, where they live and what type of clothes they have and how much they have in their account for retirement.” 

Arts Programs: Kanye West received an honorary doctorate degree from the School of the Arts Institute in Chicago. Kanye started the Loop Dreams project, that was dedicated to putting music-production equipment in schools. Kanye has talked about creating a summer program with a curriculum that centers on preparing students for real life.

“I would like to move away from traditional methods and appeal to a new generation of students that are intrigued by the arts and alternative approaches to being taught. America’s schools are currently being crushed under the weight of a test score driven system.”

Foreign Policy: As we learned in 2005’s Diamonds From Sierra Leone,” Kanye is very concerned about West African children forced to mine “blood diamonds.” Traveling is something Kanye has done a lot of. He’s toured and been in the presence of many different ethnicities and cultures.

Immigration: In 2010, Kanye joined a group of musicians to boycott performing in Arizona after the state passed one of the harshest anti-immigrant laws in the country. If West become president, he’d be an ally of undocumented immigrants, who play a vital role in the US economy. In 2011, Kanye West denounced  HB 56, a strict immigration law propositioned in Alabama. The law allowed police to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally who cannot present proper documentation if stopped by authorities, Reuters reports. It also requires publics schools to question students’ legal residence and prevents illegal immigrants from obtaining a business or driver’s license. Kanye spoke on the issue:

“I want to try to create a bridge between people who have the power to reach millions and the people who are fighting here on the ground in Birmingham. We need help here on the ground. We need for celebrities to stop being silent. We need people to speak out on every level, because silence is a form of compliance and agreement.”

Public Health: In West’s song “Roses” (2005) he discusses the inefficiencies of public health care and his frustrations with the system. He was discussing the inequality of treatment and lack of professionalism. His Grandmother was dying in the hospital receiving inadequate care, while Magic Johnson, for example, gets cured for aids. He recognizes the injustice that people with lower incomes receive.

Prison Reform: Kanye criticizes the private prison system. In “New Slaves” (2013)  He raps: “Meanwhile the DEA / Teamed up with the CCA [Correction Corporation of America] / They tryn’a lock n****s up / They tryn’a make new slaves / See that’s that private owned prison / Get your piece today.”

Marijuana Legalization: Kanye West is pro-legalization. West has frequently called for an end to the War on Drugs and, would take steps to legalize marijuana if he made it to the White House. In the process, he’d end decades of discriminatory policies, help the economy, reduce incarceration rates and deal a blow to Mexican drug cartels.

Reproductive Rights: Our prospective first lady, Kim Kardashian, is a supporter of Planned Parenthood, and also supports a woman’s freedom to control her reproductive system.

Rebranding Kanye – The Family Man

Kanye West’s public image is turbulent. America has seen him as a bully since the Taylor Swift VMA’s incident in 2008. At the time, President Obama called him a jackass. The general public still considers him arrogant, vulgar, and narcissistic.

By 2020 he will be seen as a diplomatic family man whose altruistic nature will transcend all.

The formula is there: West is the modern from rags to riches story of upward mobilization. Unlike Trump, who was born into wealth and a product of nepotism. West was raised by a single mother in the South Side of Chicago. He is a married man with two young children. All he needs is the white picket fence.

Focus: Show the world the domestic side of Kanye. In his current state of affairs, West is surprisingly quiet when it comes to his personal and private life. In general, West does not reveal personal details about himself and his family. Presidential Kanye has to let his guard down a bit and reveal himself as a father, family man, and son.

Social Media

West has a strong Twitter game. His fanatical rants display the amount of passion he has. They showcase his profound capability of caring about something and he uses his platform as a vehicle for change and progress. West does not stay silent when he witnesses injustices happening around him, and that’s the kind of President we need.

Twitter: West will run his own Twitter. Public relations people and political advisors will not control his content. By the year 2020, West’s profanity may be refined a bit due to the growing age of his children. The plan isn’t to silence or censor him, and with the campaign, his feed will be filled with political banter and ideologies.

Instagram:

 Last, but not least:

Vice president. Personally, the ideal person to add to his ticket would be Bernie Sanders, unfortunately, Sanders will be running for his re-election that term and may not oblige. So, Beyonce will do.