Donning a signature red “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) hat, West, sitting just feet away from the president at the Resolute Desk, talked freely about mental health, prison reform, and improving life for African-Americans. Former NFL star Jim Brown, who has previously voiced support for the president, was also in attendance.
On Sept. 29, West, one of Trump’s most famous supporters, publicly exalted the president during a segment on Saturday Night Live that was cut short. At the White House, West continued to praise Trump at the meeting, at one point running around the desk to hug him.
“They tried to scare me to not wear this hat,” West told Trump, referencing his SNL appearance.“When I put this hat on, it made me feel like Superman—my favorite superhero. You made a Superman cape for me.”
West said the president was brave for trying to tackle criminal justice issues. He then lamented over the lack of support for conservatives in the entertainment industry and how the president is portrayed in the media.
“What I need ‘SNL’ and liberals to improve on is, if [Trump] don’t look good, we don’t look good. He has to be the freshest, the flyest, have the flyest planes. He has to look good!” West said. “When we make everything in China and not America, we’re cheating on our country.”
After West’s lengthy soliloquy, Trump, who earlier described West as “a friend of mine for a long time” thanked him for his remarks.
“I tell you what, that was pretty impressive,” Trump said. “That was quite something.”
“It was from the soul,“ West responded. ”I just channeled it.”
West’s wife, Kim Kardashian West, visited the White House in September to discuss prison sentencing reform with Trump. In May, she met with the president to seek clemency for Alice Marie Johnson, 63, who was imprisoned for drug conspiracy.
“You don’t have to agree with [T]rump but the mob can’t make me not love him,” West wrote on Twitter.“We are both dragon energy. He is my brother. I love everyone. I don’t agree with everything anyone does. That’s what makes us individuals. And we have the right to independent thought.”