A consolidated federal lawsuit says President Donald Trump‘s rhetoric on Jan. 6. incited violence. But, in a recently filed legal memorandum, Trump’s team says the president was — as they say in the hip-hop world — just “spittin’ bars.” Let us explain.
On Jan. 6, 2021, thousands of Trump supporters were summoned to the U.S. Capitol to protest the 2020 election, which Trump and others falsely claimed was “rigged.” Trump spoke to the crowd that day, urging them to “fight like hell” to stop the vote count and overturn the results, and thousands of Trump followers invaded the Capitol. Among other damage, five people died, including one Capitol police officer, killed by rioters, according to American Oversight.
Naturally, anyone with eyes or a brain saw pretty clearly that Trump planned and incited the insurrection. The Jan. 6 Report, released in 2022, while Trump was running for reelection, agreed, stating, “The central cause of January 6th was one man, former President Donald Trump, who many others followed.”
Fast forward two years, and Trump’s Jan. 6 related lawsuit — now consolidated into one federal suit, brought by Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., and Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., among others, including five Capitol police officers there that day — says Trump violated the 1871 Ku Klux Klan Act when he incited violence against federal officials. Here’s where Eminem enters the chat.
Don’t hate the player, hate the game
This brings us to Trump’s recently filed legal motion, which, without mentioning Eminem, seems to suggest that what Trump told the crowd on the podium on Jan. 6 was free speech, not unlike how Eminem’s mention of murder in his graphic hit, “ ’97 Bonnie and Clyde,” would be protected speech. Referring to “one of the most controversial lyricists of all time” who is “particularly popular among angsty teenagers,” the motion presents a hypothetical, positing Trump was more like an emcee on the mic on Jan. 6 rather than the leader of the free world, which he was.
Here’s what the motion says, ” … [T]he rapper takes the stage at an enormous concert venue packed with thousands of his fans, and after hours of playing his most aggressive songs and stoking his audience’s passions, he yells ‘Fight the Man! Fight the Establishment! Don’t let them tell you what to do! Fight like hell!'”
The motion adds, “Inspired by the rapper’s fiery rhetoric, several of his fans decide to mirror his expressed disdain for authority by storming the nearest establishments, stealing food from the venue’s concession stands, violently attacking the vendors, and beating down security guards to access the backstage areas of the venue.”
If Trump is responsible for Jan. 6, as the consolidated lawsuits facing the president allege, Trump’s motion suggests in that hypothetical, Eminem — because let’s face it, that’s who Trump is talking about — would be, too.
As for what happens next, it’s anyone’s guess. Trump’s defense has already claimed he’s immune to Jan. 6 prosecution because he was a sitting president at the time, but the Ku Klux Klan charges were brought against him as a private citizen, and it all seems likely to be tied up in court for the time being. Could a Trump Liz Cheney diss track drop soon? We’ll keep you updated.
Published: Jan 28, 2025 02:12 pm