Kanye West’s erratic behavior reached an all-time high in 2022. He made a series of disturbing comments, was exposed for harassment and discrimination in the workplace, and harassed many people online and in interviews. It’s understandable why many people and companies have distanced themselves from the rapper, and the Clintons are no exception.
Kanye used to be on good terms with the political family, but his recent behavior and comments seemed to have changed the relationship. Here’s what we know about Kanye’s strained relationship with Bill and Hilary Clinton.
The Clintons Used To Love Kim & Kanye Together
Hilary Clinton first met Kim Kardashian in 2015, and she clearly left an impression on the politician. While speaking to Extra’s Mario Lopez, Hilary was asked if she thought Kim was a good role model for women, and she couldn’t help but gush about the reality star.
“You know, I just met her for the first time,” Hilary replied. “She came to one of my fundraisers in Los Angeles, and I really enjoyed meeting her; I really found her to be warm and very personable.”
Kim posted a selfie of herself with Hilary and Kanye at the fundraiser. “I got my selfie! I really loved hearing her speak & hearing her goals for our country!” Kim captioned the picture.
During her Extra interview, Hilary also said it was nice seeing Kanye alongside Kim.
“She had a nice way of introducing her husband, as if I didn’t know who he was,” she said. “And I enjoy seeing her with her daughter.”
Hilary added, “I think all of us in our own ways can be inspirational or aspirational for people, and I certainly think many people see her as someone who gets up every day and tries to figure out how to make that day successful.”
Kanye West Lashed Out At The Clintons After Divorcing Kim Kardashian
Though it seemed like the Clintons were on good terms with Kim and Kanye for some time, things changed when the rapper began speaking out against the political family.
When Hilary was running for the presidency in 2018, Kanye defended his support of her competitor Donald Trump to the New York Times. He said that the pressure he faced to vote democratically felt like an “arranged marriage.”
Kanye continued, “Man, I had my [expletive] [expletive] castrated: ‘You have to like Hillary. That’s got to be your choice.'”
Months later, Kanye gave an interview where he against spoke about Hilary in a negative light. Kanye said that, “he ‘loved’ Hillary Clinton but felt alienated ‘as a guy’ by her slogan ‘I'm With Her’ because he didn't have a lot of ‘male energy’ in his household as a child.”
Interestingly, public records show that Kanye had donated to her platform in the past, including $2,700 to her campaign in 2015, and $15,000 to the Democratic party in 2014.
Kanye has also had choice words for Hilary Clinton in more recent times. The politician became the subject of one of his online rants in October 2022 when he claimed his ex-wife Kim Kardashian worked with Hilary and Bill Clinton to get him to “read from the Democrat script.” Ye made the eyebrow-raising allegations during an interview on Tucker Carlson Tonight.
Kanye went on to claim he “didn’t know” Kim was so close to the Clintons, who he said tried to use her to “manipulate” him to pushing their Democratic viewpoints.
“It was interesting, friend of mine told me that Kris [Jenner] and Kim had called him because he had influence inside the black community,” Kanye went on. “And had called him to say, to get him to influence people to take the vaccination.”
“And I don't have opinion on that I just wanted to state that as a statement,” he continued. “It was wild that I didn't know how close my own wife was to the Clintons – I didn't know, I didn't realize it at the time.”
Now, The Clintons Made It Clear They Don’t Support Kanye West
The Clintons haven’t directly addressed Kanye’s allegations, but they have made it clear they don’t support his recent behavior.
For example, Bill and Hilary’s daughter made it very apparent she no longer supports Kanye. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Chelsea Clinton revealed in August 2022 that she deleted Kanye’s music from her playlists in light of his recent behavior.
“I’ve had to let go of Kanye, because it’s just, I can’t,” Chelsea explained. “Just the way that he has treated Kim Kardashian, the way that he has talked about women is unconscionable to me.”
She added, “That was some of my favorite running music. And I have removed it from my music library.”
Many people have distanced themselves from Kanye in the last year, and for good reason. So, it’s understandable that the Clintons don’t want to associate with the controversial rapper. They may never make a direct statement on Ye’s allegations, but don’t expect selfies together anytime soon.