Politix

Kanye West says claims the President or the GOP are paying him to run a spoiler campaign are laughable, because he's already wealthier than Donald Trump!

Ye recently sat down with Nick Cannon to do a segment on his podcast, "Cannon's Class," and it looks like they got to talking about controversy they've both been embroiled in recently -- Nick's anti-Semitic remarks and Kanye's presidential run.

Nick says folks have accused Kanye of being a mere puppet of the Republican Party -- and some have even speculated they're shelling out big dough to keep Ye's political ship afloat. Well, he had a perfect comeback for that ... and it came at the expense of his pal, Donald.

You'll have to watch yourself to see how Kanye worded it, 'cause it definitely got a laugh out of Nick (us too, frankly). Bottom line though ... Ye says he's virtually un-bribable.

Nick gets to another point -- which will be explored more when the full episode comes out Tuesday -- and it touches on whether Kanye believes he can actually win this thing ... and whether it's reasonable for him to be running at all. In response, another zinger from Ye.

A man was shot and killed Saturday night in Portland as hundreds of Trump supporters caravaned into the city and clashed with Black Lives Matter protesters.

The MAGA procession drew around 600 vehicles as they drove in late Saturday ... some of them armed. It didn't take long before clashes between the 2 groups erupted.

You hear shots ring out in the video and police find a man on the street who was hit. He was pronounced dead. There are reports the man was wearing a hat that read "Patriot Prayer" ... the moniker of a far, right-wing group that has made its presence known before on the streets of Portland. It's unclear if police identified the person who fired the shots.

For his part, Donald Trump could not have been happier a caravan of his supporters were rolling into Portland. Hours after the violence, he tweeted, "Great patriots."

In addition to the fatal shooting, some MAGA supporters were shooting pepper spray and paintballs at BLM protesters.

And, this is frightening ... organizers described the event as "concealed carry." Nevertheless, some of the MAGA supporters were openly displaying weapons.

President Trump's trip to hurricane-ravaged Louisiana capped off with an unseemly sight -- him handing out his autograph to city officials ... telling them to sell it for $10k a pop.

DT flew down to Lake Charles Saturday -- which was just torn through by Hurricane Laura -- and after holding a news conference with some FEMA officials on hand, 45 stuck around to give his John Hancock to fans, notably ... LC officials.

He's done it before, but this time it looks terrible for 2 reasons. First, there are people who lost everything in the storm, so jokes not appreciated. Second, the idea that the President is signing autographs and telling recipients to sell it on eBay ... well, as they say, it is what it is.

Rev. Al Sharpton is fired up about the athletes speaking out against police brutality -- saying they're making a "tremendous" impact around the country.

Sharpton is clearly impressed with stars from the NBA, MLB, NFL, tennis and beyond risking their careers to speak out against the shooting of Jacob Blake and other incidents involving black victims.

"They [the athletes] understand that their careers may last 3, 4, 5 years, but they're gonna be black forever … and that's why they need to be a part of this movement."

Sharpton says the reason the athletes are on the front lines is because "they live in these communities."

"They know that they could be treated the same way. And, I think it's a tremendous thing [that they're taking action]."

Sharpton says he admires and respects the athletes like LeBron James and others .... adding, "They've helped the movement tremendously."

Congressman Al Green was also out at the 'Get Your Knee Off Our Necks' rally in D.C. ... and also heaped praise on the athletes who have taken a stand.

Leonard Cohen's legendary song "Hallelujah" was not approved to be used at the Republican National Convention -- though it was, twice -- and now the late singer-songwriter's team is speaking out ... and threatening legal action.

Reps for both Cohen's estate and the publishing company say they rejected requests by the GOP to play or perform his song at the RNC, but President Trump's party ignored this and did it anyway.

Cohen estate’s lawyer, Michelle L. Rice, says they were surprised and dismayed the song was used at the RNC despite their declination, and described the move as a "brazen attempt to politicize and exploit" one of his most famous songs.

Rice also got a dig in at Trump, adding ... "Had the RNC requested another song, 'You Want it Darker,' for which Leonard won a posthumous Grammy in 2017, we might have considered approval of that song." She says the estate is now exploring legal options.

Likewise, Cohen's publishing company, Sony/ATV Music, also claims it was contacted about using "Hallelujah" on the eve of the RNC's final night, and said no, but they were ignored.

ICYMI ... a version of "Hallelujah" by Tori Kelly was played during the fireworks following Trump's Thursday night speech, and was then performed live in an operatic rendition by Christopher Macchio.

Remember, it was earlier this month when Neil Young sued the Trump campaign for using his songs "Rockin' in the Free World" and "Devil's Sidewalk" before rallies, after previously warning him not to.

A white man wearing blackface pissed off protesters in D.C. and got sucker-punched as cops were leading him away ... which sparked a wild police chase on foot.

A crowd of mostly Black Lives Matter and anti-Trump protesters gathered near the White House late Thursday night after President Trump accepted the presidential nomination to close the Republican National Convention.

However, one guy in blackface stood out like a sore thumb, angering some of the protesters who shouted he was racist and loudly encouraged him to get the hell outta Dodge.

As a few cops were intervening, a man recording the incident shouts "Blackface!" as another man came from behind and punched the guy in blackface.

The officers took off running after the attacker, and caught him on the street after a short pursuit -- but it was a crazy scene as they tried to nab him.

It's unclear if he was arrested, or what happened to the white guy in blackface. We've reached out to law enforcement.

Jacob Blake's father arrived to the "Commitment March" locked armed with supporters ... telling TMZ his son's fighting for his life.

We got Jacob Blake Sr. marching at the 'Get Your Knee Off Our Necks' event Friday at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. and he said his brothers -- and the event itself -- are holding him up.

Jacob's family -- along with the families of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor -- will be joined by thousands expected to show up for this march. It comes on the 57th anniversary of the March on Washington where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his historic "I Have a Dream" speech.

As you can see in the pics and video ... most attendees are socially distancing and wearing face coverings.

Martin Luther King III -- who was just 5 years old when he attended his father's speech -- and Rev. Al Sharpton are attending the event to push for an end to police violence, systemic racism and advocate for voting rights. All eerily similar goals to the historic 1963 march.

The event is that much more poignant as it comes on the heels of yet another Black man, Jacob Blake, who was shot in the back 7 times at point-blank range by police in Kenosha -- and Friday's march was organized after the funeral for George Floyd.

Trayvon Martin and Ahmaud Arbery's families are also expected to attend.

North Korea's leader, Kim Jong-un, is out and about visiting cornfields and assessing damage from storms ... just days after reports claiming he's on his death bed.

The dictator held an ear of corn and spoke with officials Thursday following Typhoon Bavi hitting the South Hwanghae Province this week ... and the photos obviously fly in the face of claims he's in a coma.

Of course, it's hard to know what to believe when it comes to North Korea and KJU, so it's anyone's guess.

As we reported ... Chang Song-min -- a former aide to the late S. Korean President Kim Dae-jung -- told South Korean media Kim was in a coma and close to death based on intel he'd received.

This news came shortly after N. Korea's own National Intelligence Service said that Kim would be gradually transferring some authority to his younger sister, Kim Yo-jong, to "ease stress."

So, the coma theory could be plausible ... but it might also just be a bunch of corny nonsense.

Rand Paul was surrounded by a crowd of protesters shouting at him about the killing of Breonna Taylor ... which led to a tense scene as police escorted him away.

The Kentucky Senator and his wife, Kelley, were leaving the Republican National Convention Thursday night in D.C. when they were confronted by the large group ... who reminded him there's still been no justice for Breonna.

Demonstrators were peaceful as they yelled "Say her name" and "Her name is Breonna Taylor" at Paul, but at one point, an officer used his bicycle to ram a protester ... and the man retaliated by pushing back.

It was an incredibly tense moment, but it didn't escalate from there as Paul and his wife left safely -- but immediately after the incident, the Senator claimed he was attacked.

He tweeted ... "Just got attacked by an angry mob of over 100, one block away from the White House. Thank you to @DCPoliceDept for literally saving our lives from a crazed mob."

Speaking of attacked ... Breonna was shot and killed by Louisville police in her own home back in March. There have still been no arrests.

Jacob Blake's dad says he spoke to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for a full hour and he found it comforting because it felt like he was talking to family.

Blake's father, who's also named Jacob, says he and Blake's mother's were nervous at first to talk with the Democrats' Presidential ticket ... but says Biden and Harris calmed them down. The elder Jacob said, "I don't think people understand the worry of a mother. That's her baby."

He revealed how the conversation went down Friday morning on CNN's "New Day" ... saying it felt "like I was speaking to my uncle and one of my sisters -- literally, literally." Jacob's father added, "It felt like they knew what was going on. And, they didn't act like they were in a hurry to go anywhere. They spent time with us."

When asked if President Trump has reached out, Jacob said, "That's a negative." Trump also never mentioned Jacob Blake's name during his RNC nomination acceptance speech.

Jacob's father, who referred to Biden and Harris as President and Vice President, also touched on his son's leg being shackled to his hospital bed.

As we reported ... Blake's dad was furious after finding out his son was handcuffed to his hospital bed during a Wednesday visit. He questioned why that was even necessary since Jacob's paralyzed from the waist down after taking 7 shots to the back from a cop. Jacob's father said his son asked, "Why did they shoot me so many times?"

Jacob's dad pointed out ... "He can't go anywhere. Why do you have him cuffed to the bed?"

Trevor Noah, Esq. is ready to defend President Trump against a flood of lawsuits once he's out of office ... that's if POTUS can't get Larry H. Parker on the line.

'The Daily Show' host took out this hilarious full-page ad in Thursday's Washington Post ... although we doubt anyone in the White House is laughing. In it, Trevor Noah & Associates & Sons say they'll defend an unnamed "Soon-to-be-ex-President" against "Corruption, mega corruption, shady rich guy tax stuff and mail murder."

Hell, Trevor says they'll even stand up for Trump because "You told people to inject bleach for some reason."

Yes, Dems will laugh it up, and the GOP will hate the ad -- which wasn't coincidentally taken out the day the Prez accepts his party's nomination.

Anyway, when/if Trump's interested ... the number's easy enough to remember: 1-210-WH-CRIME.

Kanye West is going after the top election official in Ohio for allegedly going out of his way to keep Ye off the presidential ballot ... according to a new lawsuit.

Kanye's suing the state's Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose days after the election head rejected nearly 15,000 signatures and other paperwork submitted by Kanye's campaign, which deemed him unqualified as an independent candidate for Prez.

LaRose cited mismatched info on the documents as the reason for tossing them out, but according to Kanye's suit ... he didn't have the right to do that in the first place.

Kanye's lawyers claim it's LaRose's duty to accept any petition for an independent candidate as long as there is no protest filed and it doesn't break any Ohio laws.

The emergency filing to get Kanye on Ohio's ballot comes as his presidential bid is reeling -- he was booted off the crucial Wisconsin ballot last week, along with coming up short in Montana.

He was also removed from the ballot in his home state of Illinois -- even after dropping at least $30k to get on it -- because election officials said more than half his submitted signatures were invalid.

Barack Obama says he "commends" the NBA players who participated in Wednesday's "boycott" -- saying they're setting a great example for the rest of the country.

"I commend the players on the [Milwaukee Bucks] for standing up for what they believe in, coaches like [Doc Rivers], and the NBA and WNBA for setting an example," Obama said.

"It’s going to take all our institutions to stand up for our values."

The Milwaukee Bucks were the first team to refuse to take the court for their playoff game Wednesday -- saying they were still so upset over the shooting of Jacob Blake, they wanted to send a message to the rest of the country.

Other teams followed suit -- and the league eventually announced all of Wednesday's playoff games had been postponed.

Of course, Obama's message to the NBA and its players is much different than the message the current U.S. President has delivered to the league recently.

Donald Trump has repeatedly bashed NBA players and owners -- including LeBron James -- for the way it's dealing with the social justice issues in America.

Trump has said he will boycott the league if players continue to kneel for the national anthem -- something he considers to be disrespectful to the flag and the military.

President Trump's MAGA hats are trenched in the right-wing of the Republic Party ... but Hollywood's flipping that script with one helluva twist.

A bunch of celebs are proudly wearing their own version of MAGA hats ... whether it's Ashton Kutcher, Miley Cyrus or Nev Schulman looking to change it up with Make America Gay Again or Jermaine Dupri craving better taste in music with his Make Hip Hop Great Again.

Check out the pics ... Lakers superstar LeBron James had the best MAGA hat remix when he demanded justice for Breonna Taylor by wearing a fake MAGA hat that reads, "Make America Arrest the Cops Who Killed Breonna Taylor" with the words "Great Again" crossed out.

Rudy Giuliani just went scorched-earth on Doc Rivers -- claiming his emotional speech about the Jacob Blake shooting is loaded with BS.

The former NYC mayor took serious issue with the Clippers coach during a call Wednesday on the "Brian Kilmeade Show" on Fox News Radio ... and he didn't hold back.

"What Doc is doing is seriously misleading the African-American community," Giuliani said ... "It's a con job the Democrats have played on them for 60 years."

Rudy was particularly upset about Doc's claim that Black people love America, but "this country does not love us back."

"That's a totally ridiculous statement about loving this country," Giuliani said.

"Look, the danger of getting shot by a cop is about one-tenth of one percent. The danger of being shot and killed by another black is about 99%."

"So, for every 8 or 10 people that are shot by cops every year, 7,000 are killed by other black men. So, hey Doc, how about we deal with that?! And stop blaming it on the cops."

Rudy acknowledged cops "make a mistake once in a while" but says the bigger issue is, "Why are they in your neighborhood ten times more than anybody else's neighborhood? 'Cause they don't like you or because you're killing each other ten times more than anybody else and they're trying to protect the innocent victims that your people are killing?!"

Giuliani claims he has "the right" to speak on the matter because "nobody saved more black lives than I did when I reduced homicide [in NYC] by 65% [when I was mayor]."

Pete Buttigieg says he was floored to see President Trump use the military as prop to help him get re-elected.

We talked to the former Democratic presidential candidate Wednesday on "TMZ Live" and he talked about how hurtful it was for him -- an Afghanistan war vet -- to see the 2 military men open the doors for Trump during what some are calling a stunt -- swearing people in as American citizens as part of the show.

A White House official skirted the issue, saying the campaign only capitalized on what was already a planned WH event. But, this wasn't on Trump's public schedule, so ...

Mayor Pete had some props for Melania Trump and her speech ... problem is, according to PB, she could not have been talking about her husband.

Kinda funny ... he says he'd like to meet the guy Melania was talking about.