Trump Threatening Major Culture Figures, Claiming They Took Bribes The Same Way His Endorsers Did

You’ll never be far from the mark if you interpret Trump’s accusations against his opponents as part of the primitive projectionist mindset that has dominated his whole shady life. Take these two “Truths” from earlier today, despite there being no substantiation whatsoever— just typical Trump fabrication with no credible evidence, likely meant to deflect scrutiny from his own hilariously transactional practices.

While direct payments for endorsements are probable but unproven, Trump’s interactions with celebrities, especially rappers, suggest he leveraged his presidential powers (pardons, commutations) to gain favor or public support, which could be interpreted as implicit endorsement deals— the Pardon Pipeline. For example, Trump pardoned Lil Wayne and commuted Kodak Black’s sentence in his final days in office. Both rappers faced federal gun charges, with Lil Wayne pleading guilty to possessing a loaded handgun in 2019 (facing up to 10 years) and Kodak Black serving a 46-month sentence for falsifying firearm purchase forms. Lil Wayne had met with Trump in October 2020, days before the election, and publicly praised Trump’s “Platinum Plan” for Black economic empowerment, posting a photo with him on social media. This was widely seen as an endorsement. The timing of the endorsement and subsequent pardon was a bad joke.

Similarly, Trump pardoned Michael “Harry-O” Harris, a Death Row Records co-founder, after lobbying by Snoop Dogg, who was signed to the label. Harris had served 32 years for attempted murder and drug trafficking. While Snoop didn’t explicitly endorse Trump, his advocacy and the pardon could be seen as part of Trump’s outreach to rappers for favorable optics. It’s been widely know that the Trump campaign tried to pay 50 Cent $3M, with speculation about payments to Amber Rose and Waka Flocka. Trump paid $11 million to artists to “fake support” in 2024, which is where he came up with the nonsense claim that Kamala’s campaign paid $11 million for Beyoncé’s endorsement.

Trump’s history of rewarding loyalty— pardoning Roger Stone and Paul Manafort for example— and craving celebrity validation supports the idea that he’d assume others operate in the same sleazy manner.

Right-wing musicians like Kid Rock, a longtime Trump ally, who Trump arranged to have perform at the 2024 Republican Convention, the January 19, 2025 Make America Great Again Victory Rally fit the exact description tht Trump accused Kamala’s supporters of doing: py for play. Same with Ted Nugent, another far right crackpot who has supported Trump since 2016, attending White House events, speaking at rallies  and praising Trump’s stance on gun rights and calling him a “hellraiser” sent by God. Jason Aldean is another fervent who has benefited from his support for Trump, even selling his concerts. These goofs plus Bill Ray Cyrus and Lee Greenwood were paid handsomely to perform at high-profile Trump events.

This isn’t the same thing but Trump's campaign, and especially Musk, elevated and monetized right-wing influencers who pushed Trumpist narratives, heavily utilizing social media influencers to amplify his messaging. There has long been talk about them being paid under the table, which is illegal but probable. Influencers like Catturd, Jack Posobiec, Benny Johnson and others made significant income while acting as Trump surrogates. Musk personally interacted with and amplified their accounts, increasing their visibility and income.

Trump’s baseless claim that celebrities were being paid to endorse Kamala fits his pattern perfectly. Keep in mind, when Trump accuses others of manipulation or corruption, it nearly always reveals what he is actually doing behind the scenes. So this sudden accusation about paid endorsements raises a huge red flag—especially considering his own deep entanglement with celebrity culture and transactional loyalty. No one doubts there was quid pro quo political favors designed to curry favor with Black male voters all through the 2024 campaign; the timing was far too neat to be coincidence.

So… when Trump says Kamala was paying for celebrity endorsements— especially without a shred of evidence evidence— it’s almost certainly a confession in disguise.