Donald Trump is being cautioned to not make a fuss about international superstar Bad Bunny being selected to perform at the Super Bowl in February because it could blow up in his face.
The choice of the Puerto Rican rapper, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, to be the featured artist at the sporting event that reaches hundreds of millions of viewers, was greeted with outrage by the president’s MAGA base because he has vociferously opposed Trump’s immigration policies and because they fear he will sing in Spanish.
Writing for MSNBC, analyst Nnamdi Egwuonwu suggested Trump stay clear of the controversy because the rapper would have him where he wants him and the ensuing battle could cost the Trump administration — and by extension the Republican Party — at the polls.
Egwuonwu wrote, “The three-time Grammy winner cited frustrations with Trump’s effort to boost deportations as a factor in his decision to exclude the mainland United States from a stadium world tour in support of his album,” and added, “When the Super Bowl comes back around in February, there will be real questions about how both Trump and Bad Bunny handle the moment — but no one should expect either side to play nice.”
Noting Bad Bunny’s enormous popularity in the Hispanic community and reach on music streaming services like Spotify, the analyst predicted gains made by the GOP with Latinos could dissipate if Trump decides to enter the fray.
“Whereas there’s little downside for Bad Bunny to go after Trump, there are some potentially massive ramifications for Trump to go after the Puerto Rican rapper,” he suggested before noting, “Trump has seemed to recognize more recently that it’s bad politics to attack massively popular pop stars. He’s decidedly toned down his Taylor Swift criticism, even responding to the news that Swift and Travis Kelce were engaged by saying he wishes them ‘a lot of luck.'"
“With a committed Trump opponent like Bad Bunny taking the stage, knowing there will likely be more than 100 million people watching, will the politically active rapper really pass up the opportunity to make a statement?” he wrote. “And will Trump really be able to keep quiet if he does? It seems like a bad bet.”
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