Kanye West: The presidential bashing just keeps coming

First it was President Obama, who made headlines with his blunt assessment of Kanye West's boorish behavior at Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards, calling the hip-hop star a "jackass." (Even though there was an orgy of hand-wringing in media circles about whether ABC's Terry Moran should have Twittered the president's off-the-record quip, I always thought the real story was -- what is Obama doing watching the hopelessly tacky VMAs in the first place?)

But now Kanye is in trouble with another Oval Office occupant, former President Jimmy Carter, who, speaking at a town hall meeting at Emory University, called West's behavior "completely uncalled-for" and, showing off a surprisingly dry sense of humor, added that "his punishment was to appear on the new Jay Leno show."

I'm betting that before the week is over, our other living ex-presidents will feel obligated to comment on the controversy in their own special way:

George W. Bush: "Kanye West? Isn't that the guy who wrote 'My Pet Goat?' "

Bill Clinton: "I don't know about Kanye, but I sure would like to have some hush puppies with Amber Rose." 

George H. W. Bush: "Never read 'My Pet Goat,' but I think a just punishment for Mr. West would be to read the damn book on 'Oprah' and see if he ever has any street cred afterward."

Photo: Kayne West. Credit: Jason Szenes / European Pressphoto Agency.

Comments

[Paul]

On the record or off the record. Who cares the Pres was right. And with all the open mics in the world you as a public leader should know better that the new public decorum is that any comment at anytime is up for grabs....Ask the State Assemblyman who just had to resign. Weren't his remarks considered off the record? But he's out and rightfully so. You can't assume that people won't report what they hear anymore. Nothing is off the record.

[ima]

I agree with the previous comments - MOST of us learned about this because it was national news, not because we watched "the hopelessly tacky VMAs in the first place." Get a clue, Goldstein.

[Gaucho420]

I didn't watch the VMA's, but I knoew what Kanye said...its called watching the news. I'm sure Obama has time at some point in the day to catch a glimpse of news and this was all over the news.

Stupid comment by the writer.

[Dubyasee, Tucson AZ]

Kanye West's boorish behavior did decades of damage to race relations in a matter of seconds.

[problemwithcaring]

"I always thought the real story was -- what is Obama doing watching the hopelessly tacky VMAs in the first place?"

And that is why you write a blog that no one reads for a newspaper no one respects.

[Craig]

Patrick Goldstein -- Get a life

[Rich]

Stop making comments that reveal the stupidity of the story's writer(s). They are just paid to string a lot of words together with a certain density of buzzwords and buzz-ideas. If they like to imagine that Obama was sitting at home, eating bon-bons and watching the awards in his bathrobe and slippers, as they were, who are we to point out the stupidity? Plus... nobody buys newspapers any more, so show some compassion!

[Jeff Kaleb]

I can't believe a writer actually gets paid to talk about someone else who talked about someone else who said something they shouldn't have. And now I'm writing a comment about it...

[China Smith]

When are we going to leave this thing alone? Americans have a tendency to go on and on and on and on.........enough please!

[Tara]

the worst punishment for kanye is all those "dis-invitations" he's received from the celebrities since hopping onto the stage.