White House

The super-prepared Texas voter who came equipped with her chair, her snacks and her "grown folks hair" to wait out a long poll line says her popular TikTok was actually an important PSA.

Belinda Varnado tells TMZ ... the purpose of her instantly viral clip was to make sure seniors, like herself, come prepared to make sure they don't miss out on their opportunity to vote.

She's seen all the news about ridiculously long lines for early voting -- where people have to wait for up to 15 hours -- and she knows all that standing doesn't work for folks up in age.

So, Belinda's encouraging her peers to pack the right gear, be prepared to hunker down ... but stay determined to cast their ballots.

She and her daughter, Chevelle Brooks, are also stressing the importance of voting early -- especially this year -- and Belinda's not shy about her ultimate goal either.

It's officially going down ... Joe Rogan is hosting Kanye West on his uber-popular podcast -- and it sounds like Ye's been given license to get creative with the look.

Kanye tweeted out the news Saturday -- wishing his public request from last week into existence. He writes, "Joe Rogan said it’s cool for me to design the set for our podcast this Friday ⛷." KW also attached a couple screengrabs from a FaceTime convo they had.

The summit of personalities, if you will, comes just a few days after Kanye expressed interest in sitting down and chatting on the 'JRE' -- which has millions of followers ... and which now lives exclusively on Spotify after years on YouTube. Talk about a big get for them, huh?

Now, Joe hasn't confirmed the chat himself just yet, but something tells us it's happening. While JR didn't directly respond to Kanye's plea this past week ... we know he's been wanting to book Ye for a while to pick his brain. He's praised Kanye as a genius of sorts in the past ... likening him to someone who operates on a different plane with higher voltage.

Of course, this also allows Joe to get in on the presidential race ... sorta. Remember, he recently floated the idea of moderating a multi-hour podcast-style debate between Trump and Biden -- something Trump was actually down for ... the implication being, we think, that JB wouldn't be able to hang for that long. Joe's podcasts often run three to four hours-plus.

A milestone day on QAnon's absurd conspiracy theory-filled calendar is about to be washed away like the BS it is -- because, no ... JFK Jr. is NOT coming back to rally with President Trump.

John F. Kennedy's deceased son -- John F. Kennedy Jr. -- is trending this weekend ... all to point out just how kooky the QAnon crowd is and what they believe. One of their biggest prophecies ... that John Jr. is actually alive, and on Oct. 17, 2020 (to the day) -- he'd be announced as DT's running mate at a rally in Dallas ... replacing Mike Pence.

Two major issues with that ... sadly, JFK Jr. hasn't been with us for years -- if you're unaware, he (along with his wife, Carolyn, and her sister) died in a plane crash in 1999 while he was piloting a private aircraft from New Jersey to Massachusetts, on their way to a Kennedy wedding.

QAnon followers think John faked his death and has been in hiding this whole time. Unclear how or why folks think he'd all of a sudden resurrect now and join, of all people, Donald Trump. Remember, his father was a Democrat ... and so was his son. The guy even gave a keynote speech at the 1988 Democratic National Convention.

Aside from perhaps a few photo-ops the Donald and John posed for together back in the day while living/working in NYC -- there's virtually no connection or affiliation between the two.

More importantly ... there's no Dallas rally planned for Saturday. Trump's actually heading to Janesville, WI -- but he'll be nowhere near the Lone Star State. There appears to have been a Dallas rally around this time last year -- but whoever predicted a repeat screwed up.

President Trump and Tommy Lee now have something in common ... they've both said goodbye to America if their candidate loses the presidential election.

Trump told the crowd in Macon, Georgia Friday ... he's running against the man he calls the worst candidate in the history of politics.

As the President mocked Joe Biden's penchant for requiring social distancing and masks at his campaign event, Trump seemed to be saying he couldn't bear the humiliation of losing to Biden ... and then he suggested he might just bail on the U.S.A. if he loses the election.

The crowd -- most of whom did not wear masks and forget social distancing -- loved it.

It's a beautiful day to be Joe Biden, because he's being compared to Fred Rogers ... even by the son of the legendary children's TV show host.

It's pretty ironic, but the Democratic presidential nominee has senior Trump campaign advisor Mercedes Schlapp to thank for this positive pub, after she compared Biden's Thursday town hall to watching "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood." Of course, she meant it as a bad thing.

The intended jab was a major fail -- including misspelling Fred's last name -- as Twitter folks immediately reminded her that Mister Rogers is admired and beloved by almost everyone.

His own son, John Rogers, tells TMZ ... comparing anyone to his father is a major compliment, not an insult, and Biden's worthy of the praise. He says he especially sees a similarity in the demeanor of the 2 men, telling us Biden seems gentle like his father ... and speaks like him too.

John says his dad had a lot of kindness and feelings for other people, and his iconic show was so special because he was incredible with kids, great to those who worked for him, and spread a wonderful message across the globe.

John's not the only Rogers family member to give props to Joe either. Fred's widow, Joanne, described herself as a "very big Biden fan" last month and said ... "I think we all need somebody like Biden who can give us little pats on the back."

The former VP called Joanne a little while later to thank her.

On the flip side, she blasted President Trump for constantly lying and called him a "horrible person."

Joaquin Buckley's incredible spinning back kick KO has made it to the White House -- President Trump was so impressed, he called Dana White to rave about it!

Buckley's insane takedown of Impa Kasanganay at UFC Fight Night 179 has exploded after being hailed by many as the greatest knockout in MMA history.

In fact, Kanye West used the KO footage as the backdrop for his new song, "NAH NAH NAH" ... which has already been viewed by millions of people.

When we spoke with Buckley, he was STOKED to get love from Yeezus -- suggesting they could collaborate on a project together down the line ... even though Joaquin doesn't rap!

"Hey, I can learn how [to rap] though! I can write it down real quick. I can come up with a couple of things!!"

As for President Trump, Joaquin says he got a call from UFC president Dana White after the KO telling him his good friend POTUS personally called him up to tell him how impressed he was with the epic finish.

And yeah, Joaquin says he's flattered by the compliment from the Commander In Chief.

"He's the world leader at the end of the day. If anything, that's good to have a person like that on your side."

And get this, 26-year-old Buckley is still NOT a full-time MMA fighter -- he has a job at Walgreen's ... though he admits he might have to cut back his hours to focus on fighting now!

"I'm still employed by Walgreens. I gotta talk to my boss right now because I was supposed to head back on Monday!"

Buckley says he loves the Walgreen's job, but his fighting career is exploding right now and he knows he'll have to commit full-time in order to compete at the highest level.

The good news ... Buckley says his boss and co-workers are 100% supportive.

"They're just happy for me. I told 'em where I come from, they know my background, they know my story -- and just to see where I'm at now, everybody's proud of me."

Buckley is 11-3 as a pro and is now scheduled to take on Jordan Wright at UFC 255 next month!

President Trump's predicting a red wave on Election Day, but one of his rallies looked like a potential wave of COVID cases when a Georgia politician treated it more like a mosh pit.

Georgia state Rep. Vernon Jones crowd-surfed Friday during Trump's rally at Middle Georgia Regional Airport in Macon. Pre-pandemic we'd say this looks like big fun, especially for a political event -- but that just ain't the reality.

Jones, or anyone else in the crowd for that matter, didn't seem too concerned about potential COVID-19 spread ... lots of folks put their hands on him and no one, in photos at least, was wearing a face covering.

Jones, a Democrat who's endorsed Trump, gave a pep talk to the crowd before diving into it. The President, who won't say when he tested negative for the virus, did not follow suit.

John Carlos -- the Olympian who famously raised his fist at the '68 Games -- is speaking out strongly against President Trump ... saying he's bad for America and needs to go.

"You've created nothing but divide and dissent and anger and hatred toward the American citizen," Carlos said on "TMZ Live" Friday -- which happens to be the 52nd anniversary of the famous Olympic moment.

The former track star says he's disgusted with Trump's personal attacks against Kamala Harris and other women ... and is asking voters to rise up and do something about it!

"I would just applaud anyone and everyone who has the right to vote to get out and vote."

"Get the vote in because it's the most critical time in world history."

The 75-year-old has also come out with a series of COVID masks that feature his iconic clenched fist and the words, "We Are One" over the American flag.

Carlos says he made the masks for 2 reasons -- 1, to keep people safe. And 2, to send a strong message about the role of Black people in America.

Tyler Perry's part of a massive campaign targeting 25 counties and 250k Black residents in Florida ... in a push to get them to the polls.

The entertainment mogul's teamed up with a Black-led nonpartisan group called Equal Ground Education Fund on its half a million-dollar "Park & Praise" initiative. The campaign includes a series of events where voters can drop off mail-in ballots while hearing from church leaders, musical acts and gospel choirs.

Perry's helping fund the effort -- dubbed as bringing "Souls to the Polls" -- to increase Black voter engagement and turnout in the state. Equal Ground adds that its mission is to combat Florida’s long history of voter disenfranchisement and help build Black political power.

Of course for this election, the organization says it must adapt to the pandemic ... so it's retooling the popular voter tradition by taking proper precautions to "meet the moment of social-distancing."

The non-profit's founder, Jasmine Burney-Clark, says ... "Our work to provide robust voter education and ensure that accurate information reaches our communities is the highest priority and is exactly what this partnership with Tyler Perry is going to do."

Donald Trump says he's always denounced white supremacy despite his stumbling block on the debate stage, but he won't denounce the QAnon conspiracy theory.

Trump refused to condemn the bizarre QAnon theory during Thursday's town hall on NBC with Savannah Guthrie ... and his reasoning -- he doesn't know anything about it.

Quick refresher ... QAnon claims, among other things, the world is being run by a cabal of Satan-worshiping pedophiles who are moving against Trump at the same time they operate a global child sex-trafficking ring.

Trump says he can't denounce it, or tell the American people it's all bogus, because he's not up to speed on the theory ... other than knowing QAnon is against pedophilia just like he is.

POTUS brushed off several points Guthrie made ... like the fact GOP Sen. Ben Sasse has already ripped the theory as "nuts" and said real leaders call out conspiracy theories.

Guthrie also pressed Trump on his hesitation to denounce white supremacy at the debate, and he claimed he's always denounced white supremacists ... despite the fact he told the Proud Boys to "stand back and stand by."

Trump got super defensive, then attacked Guthrie and the media.

President Trump is giving it up to Jesus Christ ... acknowledging the Christian messiah is more famous than he is. Wow, quite a concession!

The President's campaigning in Greenville, North Carolina, and while addressing supporters he brought up the topic of his fame and where he ranks. He claimed someone told him he's the most famous person in the world "by far."

Trump -- ever the humble servant -- says he insisted he's not ... because that title belongs to J.C. The pandering worked, as the crowd ate up Trump's remark and POTUS reveled in it.

His Christian anecdote is reminiscent of John Lennon saying, in 1966, the Beatles were "more popular than Jesus." It was intended as a shot at the obsession fans and the media had with the group, but religious groups blasted him for it.

Trump didn't wanna go down that road, and quipped he can't argue with Christ being #1 because he's "not gonna take any chances."

Trump's claimed many times to be a devout Christian and that his favorite book of all time is the Bible ... so it shouldn't come as a surprise that he holds Jesus in such high regard.

Of course, if someone were to ask the President what his favorite story about Jesus is -- or even which testament of the Bible is his fave -- there's a good chance he'd punt on the question.

Forget the Secret Service, the "Baddest MF" on the planet has Donald Trump's back in Miami ... Jorge Masvidal.

The UFC superstar (and reigning "BMF" titleholder) was waiting for POTUS at Miami International Airport on Thursday to personally greet Trump as he arrived for his NBC Town Hall event at the Perez Art Museum.

Masvidal was wearing a mask. Trump -- who recently tested positive for COVID-19 -- was not. But, Jorge didn't seem too concerned.

While at the airport, Trump told reporters, "Don't ever fight him!"

Trump and Masvidal have become close over the past few weeks -- with Jorge even campaigning for Donald at a recent "Fighters Against Socialism" rally.

Earlier this week, Trump tweeted at Masvidal, "Jorge, you’re really tough and really smart. My Great Honor to have your support!"

Masvidal -- whose father was born in Cuba -- responded, "My honor and duty to the country my father risked his life escaping to from the hands of communists. Said it before and I’ll say it again, you a bmf sir."

Earlier this week, Masvidal had a fast-food lunch with Donald Jr. -- and said they had a lot in common ... including "good hair."

Trump has won over several UFC fighters over the past few months -- including Justin Gaethje and Henry Cejudo.

President Trump's campaign is pumping "In the Air Tonight" at his Des Moines rally -- where few people are wearing face masks -- and it's in breathtakingly poor taste considering some grim COVID-19 facts.

The song choice comes as the coronavirus is ravaging the state. Iowa has the 4th highest COVID-19 infection rate in the U.S., 61 senior care facilities are reporting outbreaks and it saw 1,180 new cases ... just on Wednesday.

So, hearing the Phil Collins hit -- already an ominous-sounding song -- blaring over the crowd of Trump-supporting, mask-shunning Iowans feels disgustingly grim. CNN's Jim Acosta was doing a live shot from the event as the song played ... and it was surreal to see.

Let's not fool ourselves ... this is NO coincidence.

Trump and his campaign never miss a chance to jab at his haters with their music selections at his rallies. He's definitely heard all the criticism of him holding potential "super-spreader" rallies as COVID cases spike across most of the country.

Barron Trump came down with coronavirus when his mom and dad did ... so says the First Lady.

Melania Trump posted an essay Wednesday on the WH site about her personal experience with battling COVID-19, which both she and her husband, Donald, contracted a couple weeks ago. She revealed that their 14-year-old, Barron, actually became infected as well.

She says that as soon as she was diagnosed as positive, her mind immediately went to Barron -- who, to her relief, tested negative at first. However, he came back with a positive shortly thereafter, but since then ... Melania says he too, like his folks, are now COVID-free.

The First Lady writes, "Luckily he is a strong teenager and exhibited no symptoms. In one way I was glad the three of us went through this at the same time so we could take care of one another and spend time together. He has since tested negative."

The White House confirmed Barron's negative test, but appear to have kept any further testing/diagnoses on the low publicly ... until now, that is.

Melania doesn't get into Barron's specific treatment regimen, but she does touch on her own ... which was apparently vastly different than that of POTUS himself, who was admitted to the hospital for a bit and put on a number of medications, some of which are experimental.

President Trump's voice sounds a little worse for wear, and it could be due to back-to-back rallies to flaunt his post-COVID condition ... or possibly the lingering effects of the virus.

POTUS was addressing the New York Economic Club at The White House Wednesday afternoon when he repeatedly cleared his throat ... and the hoarseness only got worse as he kept talking.

The focus of his message also seemed to worsen as he rambled ... but nothing really new there.

Of course, Trump's latest White House speech follows 2 straight nights of rallies in Pennsylvania and Florida. As we reported ... he held a massive rally in Sanford, FL Monday on the heels of announcing he'd tested negative for coronavirus twice.

During the rally, the Prez made claims he's immune to COVID now, and suggested he'd be down to kiss everyone in the audience. He made similar boasts and remarks Tuesday night in Johnstown, PA ... along with several other baseless claims.

You'll recall ... just over a week ago he struggled to breathe after being released from the hospital and climbing the WH stairs. Now, he's on stage acting like it was no biggie.

Joe Biden just found a new, unique way to reach a demographic of voters who might tune out his typical ads -- turning to hip-hop and rap to get out his message.

The Biden-Harris campaign just released a new political spot featuring New York battle rappers Charlie Clips and DNA -- who are incredibly well-known and respected in their craft. Sure enough, both men used their gift of gab and rhyme to hash out the pros and cons of voting ... and to convey what Joe and Kamala say they can do for African-Americans.

Charlie is the disillusioned one ... taking on the role of the on-the-fence voter who's not pleased with this year's choices for President -- like many Americans. DNA's on the other side of things, laying out, in sometimes excruciating detail, why he feels Joe's the better option.

They hit several hot button issues -- Black ownership of businesses, HBCU funding and police reform. We'll say this ... the ad is innovative -- not to mention incredibly well-written as far as bars go. However, it also runs the risk of coming off as pandering ... depending on how people take it.