Eminem's Anti-Trump Rap And Ultimatum To Fans
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: All right. So, rapper Eminem had an anti-Trump rap that has gone viral and he had an ultimatum for his fans that support the president.</s>EMINEM, RAP ARTIST: Any fan of mine who is a supporter of his, I'm drawing in the sand a line. You're either for or against. And if you can't decide who you like more and your split on who you should stand beside, I'll do it for you with this. The rest of America, stand up.</s>CAMEROTA: All right. Here to discuss, CNN political commentator Ana Navarro, and Ben Ferguson. Nice to have both of you in studio.</s>BEN FERGUSON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, HOST, "THE BEN FERGUSON SHOW": Good morning.</s>CAMEROTA: So, Ana, let me start with you. What do you think about what Eminem did? You know, he obviously is a huge rapper. He has sold millions and millions of records. He has a big following. Do you think that maybe -- and he's in Michigan which is significant, politically. Do you think that this matters and gets any traction with his, you know, fan base?</s>ANA NAVARRO, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Look, I certainly cannot speak for his fan base. I am not a member of it. I can't -- you know, other than "Slim Shady," I'm not sure I could recognize a single song.</s>NAVARRO: I come at this from a broader freedom of speech aspect, right. And I think we are in the midst of a very broad and complicated freedom of speech debate in this country, whether it's flag, anthem. You know, right-wing, white supremacist acologists (ph). Whether it is freedom of speech like we just saw exercised by Eminem. The press -- you know, the President of the United States threatening the press with taking away licenses from networks that he thinks are against him. There is a very broad freedom of speech going on -- debate in the United States and I think we have to be so vigilant about it. I come at this also from the -- you know, the angle from being a political exile. I fled communism, as I said to you last night. I live in Miami. In Miami, my friend Gloria Estefan's songs, they can't be played in Cuba. It's illegal to play Gloria's songs in Cuba. Willy Chirino, illegal to play his songs in Cuba. Celia Cruz, illegal to play her songs in Cuba and they're not even profane. They're just talking about freedom. So I think it is an aspect of America that makes us great, freedom of speech, and we have to defend it whether we like the content or not.</s>CAMEROTA: Do you think --</s>FERGUSON: It --</s>CAMEROTA: Well, hold on a second. Do you think that President Trump is encroaching on freedom of speech?</s>FERGUSON: I don't. I think he's challenging people, which is exactly what tells us we have real freedom of speech in this country. I think Eminem and what he did, flicking off the president and telling people you're either on my team or you're not against this president, you're no longer a part of my group, is brilliant marketing by him. He's got an album coming out. But let's look at the source of this. I have no respect for Eminem. This is a guy that talks about how to rape women, how to assault women. This is a guy also, politically, that I don't put any stock in what he says because he's attacked George Bush when he had an album coming out. He attacked Hillary Clinton when he had an album coming out. He attacks now, Donald Trump when he has an album coming out. He's an opportunist and understands that if you go out there and act like this Billy bad-A and you rap about it and you give the finger to the President of the United States of America, you're going to get millions of dollars in free press.</s>CAMEROTA: I think he might be giving the finger to his fans. But anyway --</s>FERGUSON: I think he's giving it to --</s>FERGUSON: I think he's giving it to Donald Trump, too.</s>CAMEROTA: But it also gives a moral high ground.</s>FERGUSON: No, he doesn't have a moral high ground because the guy literally has made a living --</s>CAMEROTA: Right.</s>FERGUSON: If you listen to his lyrics about wanting to kill people, choking women's vocal chords to the point where they can't speak while raping them. These are his new lyrics. This isn't 10 years ago lyrics.</s>NAVARRO: But I think that --</s>CAMEROTA: Just one more thing about like the president saying that he's going to revoke, you know, news licenses for the press.</s>FERGUSON: Yes.</s>CAMEROTA: You don't think that's an encroachment on freedom of speech?</s>FERGUSON: I think the president has to be very careful to not go too far in that way. I think it's fine to point out bias or news stories that are inaccurate. I make a living off of those airwaves, right, as a talk show host --</s>CAMEROTA: Yes.</s>FERGUSON: -- as a T.V. commentator. That's --</s>CAMEROTA: Said Sean Hannity, by the way, who's dissing the media.</s>FERGUSON: But I have a -- I don't like it when we start talking about pulling someone's license. That --</s>CAMEROTA: That's too far.</s>FERGUSON: I think that's too far, in general. But I -- but I also think that it's too far for a rapper to come out and to say that I'm going to give you that finger and I'm going to do this --</s>CAMEROTA: That's fine, but a rapper is different than the president. It's different than the president.</s>FERGUSON: Right, but look at all the people that -- I mean --</s>CAMEROTA: I mean, you'd have to be more careful.</s>FERGUSON: Even Ellen DeGeneres tweets out "I love Eminem." This is a woman who says that she would never have Trump on her show but says she loves a rapper whose lyrics talk about raping women. How can we not call that out as being absurd?</s>NAVARRO: Well, but it's equally absurd for people to support a man who talked about grabbing women and then, you know, get all holy roller when it comes to --</s>FERGUSON: Which, by the way --</s>NAVARRO: - a hip-hop rapper. So, you know, it's beyond too far for Donald Trump to threaten to yank licenses because that he doesn't like the content of what a network is saying. It is authoritarian, it is undemocratic, it is un-American, it is unconstitutional. And we should all be denouncing it strongly because you see, the big danger here is that we all get numb to the crazy stuff Donald Trump says and think it's not going to end up being anything, but it really may be something. And I do think that it's affecting the national psyche. Look, what Eminem said -- and like I tell you, I can't even talk about his former lyrics because I don't know anything about his former lyrics. I did hear what he said now and what he said now, yes, laced with a lot of profanity, is what a lot of people are saying about the wall. About, you know, how dare Donald Trump talk about patriotism when he has been beating up on John McCain, who is a patriot and who is a hero. So, a lot of the things that he was voicing are being voiced around kitchen tables, not in rap and not with profanity. But yes, the content. And when he says --</s>FERGUSON: But --</s>NAVARRO: When he says to his fans, you know, here's a line in the sand, let me tell you that is very symptomatic of America right now. Certainly not in those words but it's going on in American families. It's going on in the American workplace --</s>CAMEROTA: There is division --</s>NAVARRO: -- where there are lands --</s>FERGUSON: Yes. But I also think the left has to be very careful to not wrap their selves around -- just like Ellen DeGeneres did, for example -- a guy who is so disgusting and vile towards women --</s>CAMEROTA: OK.</s>FERGUSON: Just because he's anti-Trump --</s>NAVARRO: But Ben, I could turn that exactly around --</s>FERGUSON: But hold on. Wait, wait, wait. Let me finish, let me finish.</s>NAVARRO: I could say the right has got to be very careful not to wrap --</s>FERGUSON: Let me finish, let me finish.</s>NAVARRO: -- themselves around a guy --</s>FERGUSON: Again, let me finish. Let me finish.</s>NAVARRO: -- who is so disgusting and vile --</s>FERGUSON: Let me finish. Let me finish.</s>NAVARRO: -- that he talked about grabbing --</s>FERGUSON: Let me finish. Let me finish.</s>NAVARRO: -- women.</s>FERGUSON: Again,</s>I -- NAVARRO: You could fake that --</s>FERGUSON: -- denounced that --</s>NAVARRO: Right.</s>FERGUSON: -- and I said that it was inappropriate when it happened. I never defended Donald Trump when he said that and I said it was absolutely wrong. I'm consistent in what I'm saying here about the standard. But I think what we're also seeing, and it worries me, is that we now are in a culture where it doesn't matter what your resume says, how vile, how disgusting, how sick you are and misogynist towards women, that the left will come out and wrap their arms around Eminem and send out tweets saying I love you when this is what you're selling. And remember -- Ellen DeGeneres should look at this.</s>CAMEROTA: No, no, no.</s>FERGUSON: Ellen comes out almost every day, though, and talks about women.</s>CAMEROTA: The president says vile comments.</s>FERGUSON: But let's look at Ellen here. She says she will not have the president on her show because of what he said, but she will tell all of her audience that she loves Eminem --</s>NAVARRO: But, do you --</s>FERGUSON: -- which is saying go buy his lyrics, go buy his album.</s>NAVARRO: Do you think we should a rapper --</s>FERGUSON: I think you hold both them to the same standard.</s>NAVARRO: -- to the same -- Oh, I don't. I certainly don't.</s>FERGUSON: I think you hold him to the same standards.</s>NAVARRO: I -- look, the rapper --</s>FERGUSON:  I -- NAVARRO: The rapper doesn't have the nuclear code. The rapper is not an example to follow for children. The rapper is not representing me around the world.</s>FERGUSON: Oh, Ellen said yesterday it was.</s>NAVARRO: The rapper is not -- is not the President of the United States.</s>FERGUSON: Hollywood said it was yesterday.</s>CAMEROTA: Hold on. Let's table -- let's table this for a second.</s>NAVARRO: I can turn the rapper off.</s>CAMEROTA: One --</s>NAVARRO: I can't turn Donald Trump off as President of the United States.</s>CAMEROTA: You can't turn him off.</s>FERGUSON: Many people endorsed him yesterday, and endorsed him of some sort of moral -- of moral leader. That's the problem we have.</s>CAMEROTA: OK. Well, because we're approaching the weekend, what's going to happen with the NFL? What do you think is going to happen with these protests? So the president now says he expects everybody to stand.</s>FERGUSON: Sure.</s>CAMEROTA: I don't know that they're going to comply with that. And this is -- do you see this is a freedom of speech issue?</s>FERGUSON: I don't see it as a freedom of speech issue. I think you have the right to do it. I think there's consequences for your actions. It's the same thing you teach children when they're young. You have the right to do a lot of things in this country. There are consequences and the NFL got it wrong. The NFL tried to come out and play both sides of this issue. And then they tried to say oh, we're America's team, we're America's game, we're America's sport while allowing their employees to disrespect this country. You have the right to do it -- there's consequences.</s>CAMEROTA: Now, look --</s>FERGUSON: The NFL boycott is real.</s>CAMEROTA: I just want to be very clear. They say they're not disrespecting the country. They say that their protest is about the treatment --</s>FERGUSON: That's what they say.</s>CAMEROTA: But, they're the sources.</s>FERGUSON: But I'm saying --</s>CAMEROTA: They're doing the protests. You ask the protesters.</s>FERGUSON: I have the right to -- I have the right to disagree with them. I'll say this. I think many of the NFL players are frauds. Most of them did not go and vote in the last election -- including Colin Kaepernick who has never voted in an election -- while coming out and claiming --</s>NAVARRO: Voting is not a requirement to protest.</s>FERGUSON: Let me finish. Let me finish.</s>NAVARRO: Voting is not a requirement to voice a political opinion.</s>FERGUSON: If you're going to be the leader of a political statement, as Colin Kaepernick was --</s>NAVARRO: Donald Trump's children didn't vote and they are advisers in the White House.</s>FERGUSON: -- and he's a -- and I criticized. And I criticized them for that. I'm consistent in my logic here.</s>NAVARRO: Well, fine. You'll criticize them for everything but don't tell me then that they don't have the right to protest when --</s>FERGUSON: Again, Colin Kaepernick comes out here and says I'm going to disrespect this country.</s>NAVARRO: -- there are team advisers in the White House who didn't vote.</s>FERGUSON: Colin Kaepernick comes out and says I'm going to lead this group. When was the last time he went to a Black Lives Matter rally? This guy saw a bunch of T.V.s and said -- a bunch of cameras and said I'm going to kneel right now but I'm not going to back up.</s>FERGUSON: He has the right but it's almost means to a cross.</s>NAVARRO: How white of you to think that going to a Black Lives --</s>FERGUSON: No, no. Don't even go there.</s>NAVARRO: -- Black Lives Matter rally.</s>FERGUSON: I'm sorry. That's absurd.</s>NAVARRO: No, no, no. Who are you to tell a black person what makes them black --</s>FERGUSON: It's not -- it's --</s>NAVARRO: -- and what makes them, you know --</s>FERGUSON: No, it's fraud if you're --</s>NAVARRO: -- half black credible.</s>FERGUSON: I'm saying it has nothing to do with race. Listen.</s>NAVARRO: I mean, really --</s>FERGUSON: Listen. Listen to what I'm saying.</s>NAVARRO: Look at yourself in the mirror.</s>FERGUSON: Listen, this is insanity.</s>NAVARRO: You know, what he is saying may be -- might be --</s>FERGUSON: If I go out for it every day and</s>I -- NAVARRO: Then go to one of their rallies.</s>FERGUSON: -- and I champion a cause but I never do it in real life, I'm a fraud. Again --</s>NAVARRO: Who are you? Who died and made you the judge of blackness to Colin what's his name, you know, whether --</s>FERGUSON: It has nothing to with blackness. This may be a great --</s>NAVARRO: -- the fact that he voted or not allow him to have a political opinion.</s>FERGUSON: If you go out three every day and you fight for something that you say is so dear and near to your heart, and then I find out in reality you were never involved in the issue outside of being on national</s>TV -- NAVARRO: Well, the -- the potential --</s>FERGUSON: -- you're a fraud. You are a fraud and a fake.</s>NAVARRO: Talk to Ivanka Trump --</s>FERGUSON: Again, you were talking about Colin Kaepernick.</s>NAVARRO: -- who didn't vote. Talk to Trump's -- no, no, because you want --</s>FERGUSON: I said this. I said this.</s>NAVARRO: OK, then I want you to say right now --</s>FERGUSON: It's the same thing. I've been consistent.</s>NAVARRO: -- Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump, Jr. are frauds because they didn't vote --</s>FERGUSON: They should have voted in the election.</s>NAVARRO: -- in the Republican primary.</s>FERGUSON: I said that.</s>NAVARRO: Those are fake words.</s>FERGUSON: You also voted for Hillary Clinton and you say the Republicans, so that's a little bit of fraud, isn't it?</s>NAVARRO: Oh, no, no. There's a lot of people that --</s>FERGUSON: You come out here and say you're a Republican --</s>NAVARRO: You voted for a man --</s>FERGUSON: -- and you voted for Hillary Clinton.</s>NAVARRO: You voted for a man who --</s>FERGUSON: So you're not a Republican, by your standards.</s>NAVARRO: You voted for a man who was a Democrat, and then an Independent, and then when he saw an opportunity --</s>FERGUSON: Again --</s>NAVARRO: -- he became a Republican. Really, don't go there for me --</s>FERGUSON: Again, you voted for Hillary Clinton.</s>NAVARRO: -- because I have been supporting Republican candidates for president probably while you were still in diapers.</s>FERGUSON: Again, you didn't -- you voted for Hillary Clinton and you say you're a Republican. You're going on a --</s>NAVARRO: I voted for Hillary Clinton.</s>CAMEROTA: Maybe -- listen --</s>NAVARRO: I voted for Hillary Clinton --</s>CAMS: Guys --</s>NAVARRO: -- because I refused to vote for a racist misogynist, even though he was the Republican nominee.</s>FERGUSON: And that -- and you have the right to do that.</s>CAMEROTA: Yes.</s>NAVARRO: And it was the first time in my life that I did not support a Republican nominee because I found him absolutely disgusting.</s>FERGUSON: And that's your -- and that's your right.</s>NAVARRO: And I was going to put country over party. And you are nobody to question Colin Packernick (sic) or what's his name's --</s>FERGUSON: Colin Kaepernick. I have to divide this. Again, it has nothing to do with violence. It has to do with --</s>NAVARRO: -- blackness or my Republican pick. You are not judge and jury. You can do whatever you want for yourself.</s>FERGUSON: -- authenticity.</s>NAVARRO: You cannot judge me, you cannot judge whether he is black enough.</s>FERGUSON: I can judge Colin Kaepernick. It has nothing to do with his blackness. This is the weakest argument --</s>NAVARRO: No, you're saying --</s>FERGUSON: Let me finish, though. This is the weakest argument.</s>NAVARRO: You're saying he's not black enough --</s>FERGUSON: I'm going to defend my point here. I'm going to -- no, no, no.</s>NAVARRO: -- because he didn't go to a Black Lives Matter rally.</s>FERGUSON: Again, I'm going to finish my point here because it's really important.</s>NAVARRO: And you aren't black because you went to a Black Lives Matter rally.</s>FERGUSON: Let me finish. Let me finish. Again, let me finish.</s>CAMEROTA: Go ahead.</s>FERGUSON: Colin Kaepernick coming out --</s>CAMEROTA: Yes.</s>FERGUSON: -- and saying this is a big issue to him but he never goes out in the community is involved it -- doesn't even care enough about the issue --</s>CAMEROTA: Listen.</s>FERGUSON: -- which he says everyone else should care about, to go register to vote and vote. That is hypocrisy. It has nothing to do with being black or white. It's called being a hypocrite. Colin Kaepernick is a hypocrite for not being --</s>CAMEROTA: I understand. I understand.</s>NAVARRO: Why don't you let the members of the community --</s>FERGUSON: They have.</s>NAVARRO: -- that he is representing or that he -- you know, I think he is talking for himself. Why don't you let those members of the community talk about it, not just say that?</s>FERGUSON: I can have an opinion about them and it's --</s>CAMEROTA: And you both have had very compelling, interesting, and lively --</s>FERGUSON: We still have opinions.</s>CAMEROTA: -- opinions, yes.</s>NAVARRO: Not so much.</s>CAMEROTA: It's a one-way street. Ben Ferguson, Ana Navarro, thank you for the --</s>FERGUSON: Thanks.</s>CAMEROTA: -- very spirited debate here -- Chris.</s>CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Alrighty then. President Trump tweeting about Puerto Rico this morning. What he's saying about FEMA and how long that they will be on the island, next.