Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Facing House Ethics Probe ... Denies Wrongdoing

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Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is under investigation for possible ethics violations ... and there's speculation it's all about her infamous Met Gala appearance in 2021.

The U.S. House Committee On Ethics formally announced the probe Wednesday, saying the matter was brought to them in June and their findings will be disclosed sometime next year. The Committee didn't release specifics about what prompted the investigation.

AOC's rep says, "The Congresswoman has always taken ethics incredibly seriously, refusing any donations from lobbyists, corporations, or other special interests. We are confident that this matter will be dismissed."

Now, going back to last year ... conservative groups had filed 2 ethics complaints against AOC after she attended the Met Gala, claiming her gown was an "impermissible gift" and Instagram had purchased special access for her.

You may recall, the New York Democrat famously wore a white dress emblazoned with the phrase, "Tax The Rich."

If she received free tickets it could be a violation of House rules, so that's why some people think that's what the Committee is digging into now.

AOC brushed off the criticism at the time ... saying NYC elected officials are often invited to the Met Gala, and attend "due to our responsibilities in overseeing our city's cultural institutions that serve the public."

Sen. Ted Cruz Teenage Daughter 'Okay' ... After Police Respond to Home

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Sen. Ted Cruz says his teenage daughter is "okay" after cops were called to his Texas home Tuesday night for a medical emergency.

Houston PD responded to Cruz's house in Houston's River Oaks neighborhood around 8 PM after receiving a report of a 14-year-old with self-inflicted stab wounds to their arm. The Senator, his wife Heidi and their 2 daughters, ages 11 and 14, live in the house.

One person was rushed to a hospital for treatment. Although police are not disclosing the patient's name, Cruz's rep issued a statement to ABC News, saying ... "This is a family matter and thankfully their daughter is okay."

It's unclear if Sen. Cruz was home at the time, or who called 911.

His rep adds, "There were no serious injuries. The family requests the media respect their daughter's privacy at this time."

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org.

Prince Harry & Meghan Accept 'anti-racism' Award At Gala ... For Calling Out Royal Fam

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are only days away from dropping what promises to be an explosive documentary about their time inside the royal family, but still made time to accept an honor for their efforts battling racism.

The pair was all smiles as they pulled up to the Ripple of Hope Gala in NYC Tuesday. During the event, put on by the Robert. F. Kennedy Human Rights Foundation, Harry and Meghan received the 'anti-racism' award. 

The gala highlights leaders who have shown a commitment to social change. According to the official site, "This year's laureates [honorees] have prioritized equity, inclusivity, and sustainability in the workplace and the world."

Past recipients include ... Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton to name a few.

The honor comes just one day after Netflix dropped the trailer for “Harry & Meghan." In the preview, Harry calls out the "hierarchy of the family," alleging they leaked stories about his life with Meghan to support the family's "war against Meghan."

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CONCERNS ABOUT ARCHIE'S SKIN

Remember, Meghan and Harry first came for the royal family during an interview with Oprah ... accusing unnamed members of the family of racism.

Not everyone is happy with them speaking up and telling their side of things, including Diana’s former butler, who wants them stripped of their royal titles ... but that's not stopping them from being recognized, at least during Tuesday's gala.

Ye Milo Y. Allegedly Hit Him with $116K Bill ... For Campaign Consulting

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Kanye West's pockets aren't as deep as they used to be, which might explain why he was none too pleased by Milo Yiannopoulos charging him more than $100K after their media blitz together.

Sources connected to Ye tell us he and Milo never had a financial agreement for the right-wing extremist to work as an advisor. However, we've obtained an invoice, dated Dec. 1 and allegedly sent from Milo to Kanye ... for $116,000!!!

We're told because Kanye hasn't yet officially declared a run for president in 2024, everyone who has worked with him so far -- including white nationalist Nick Fuentes and far-right activist Ali Alexander -- have worked as volunteers.

Simply put ... they can't be on the payroll of a campaign that doesn't exist.

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DINNER DATE

As we reported, Milo told the Daily Beast he and Kanye decided to part ways after reaching a "mutual conclusion" ... and we're told the issue of money was a big part of that conclusion.

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FROM THE MOUTH OF KANYE

Of course, Kanye was joined by Fuentes on "Infowars" as he spewed hate -- claiming his love for Hitler and Nazis. Milo was noticeably absent from that interview after he'd been traveling the country with Nick and Ye.

We've made several attempts to reach out to Milo about the invoice ... so far, no word back.

George Wallace If Herschel Walker's Elected ... It's Cleveland or Bust!!!

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GET ME OUT OF GEORGIA!!!

Stand-up comic George Wallace says if Herschel Walker gets elected to the U.S. Senate, a lot's gonna change -- like his home address, and also ... he's officially off ALL Walkers!!!

The comedy legend talked politics with us Monday at LAX, but with a heavy dose of humor. He says as much nonsense as there is going on in L.A., it looks like ATL is up against way worse.

Of course, Tuesday is Georgia's runoff election ... which will decide once and for all if HW takes the cake, or incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock stays put.

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WINNER, WINNER

It's pretty obvious who George is endorsing -- the dude is definitely not a fan of Walker whatsoever, and he made that perfectly clear to us with a list of others similarly named who aren't good in his book any longer. Sorry, Johnny ... and even you, Jimmy.

When we ask what'll happen if Herschel wins, he didn't hesitate to offer up the ol' "I'm leaving the country" reply we've heard from countless celebs.

George put a fresh twist on it, though ... at Cleveland's expense.

Sacha Baron Cohen at Kennedy Ctr. Uses 'Borat' to Rip Ye's Antisemitism ... Paul Pelosi in Audience

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Sacha Baron Cohen did his classic 'Borat' bit to go after Kanye West during the Kennedy Center Honors, and Rep. Nancy Pelosi's husband was among those applauding ... as he made his first public appearance since he was attacked.

The actor/comedian reprised his iconic role for a speech Sunday night at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in D.C., where George Clooney, Gladys Knight, U2 and a few other artists were honored.

During the ceremony, SBC came out dressed as the misunderstood Kazak journalist and went right after Ye's antisemitic remarks, saying ... "Before I proceed, I will say I am very upset about the antisemitism in US and A. It not fair. Kazakhstan is number 1 Jew-crushing nation. Stop stealing our hobby. Stop the steal! Stop the steal!”

He added, "Your Kanye, he tried to move to Kazakhstan and even changed his name to Kazakhstanye West. But, we said: No, he too antisemitic, even for us."

If you're unfamiliar, the 'Borat' character is known for making antisemitic jabs -- but everyone knows it's ironic humor, because Sacha is Jewish.

He even sang a parody of U2's "With or Without You," changing the lyrics to "With or Without Jews."

Later in the evening, Borat got lost and Sacha reappeared as his normal self.

Now, while his standup was certainly a highlight from the night, seeing Paul Pelosi in the building, alongside Rep. Pelosi was just as eye-opening.

It marked his first public outing since an attacker struck him with a hammer, back in October, inside the Pelosis' San Fran home.

Paul's skull was damaged, and required surgery ... but at the Kennedy Center, he seemed to have recovered well. He was wearing a hat, possibly to conceal his injuries.

He was all smiles as he got some recognition from the crowd, including First Gentleman Doug Emhoff and President Biden.

2022 Kennedy Center Honors Biden Commemorates ... Gladys, George, U2 and More!!!

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The stars were out and shining bright in D.C. this weekend ... this as President Biden bestowed lifetime awards on a handful of them who were honored at the White House.

George Clooney, Gladys Knight, Bono and the rest of U2 were on hand Sunday in our nation's capital to receive their Kennedy Center Honors for contributions to the arts over the course of their lives ... and they all dressed to impress for the swanky get-together.

Other honorees included composer Tania Leon and Christian singer Amy Grant -- they all lined up for tons of photos and took in the applause as JB sang their praises. At one point, he even singled out Gladys specifically and made a little pun about a classic tune of hers.

As for the rest of the bunch ... POTUS called them all "truly exceptional" during the reception -- noting Clooney's exceptional on-camera roles over the years, not to mention his philanthropy. And as for U2 ... well, let's just say Joe's a fan, going so far as to call them poets of our time.

BTW, it wasn't just these celebs who were in the house ... Julia Roberts was there, as was Don Cheadle, Richard Kind, Matt Damon, Sean Penn and others. So, yeah ... BIG turnout.

There's bits of video trickling out from the actual ceremony -- but the whole thing was properly recorded and is going to air in full later this month. It may even include performances from some of the musical acts ... time will tell.

Pretty good-looking group here, we must say. Congrats!

Kanye West Reportedly Boots Milo Yiannopoulos ... From Campaign Team

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Kanye West has reportedly shed at least one alt-right figure from his inner circle -- but it's not necessarily the guy you might want to see go first from the outside looking in.

Per Daily Beast journo Will Sommer, Milo Yiannopoulos has been fired from Ye's campaign team -- this following his crash-and-burn interview with Alex Jones earlier this week, not to mention a bunch of others that have gone up in flames and made KW look bad.

Sommer says Milo was booted after "a series of disastrous media appearances that saw the candidate praising Hitler." He adds that in an email, Milo wrote that there was a mutual conclusion reached that he oughta step away ... and it sounds like he has.

So, the question ... what about Nick Fuentes, the self-proclaimed white nationalist who's had Ye's ear for several weeks or so? Sommer reports his status in the Ye camp isn't quite as clear, but suspects the dude's probably safe ... for now.

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FROM THE MOUTH OF KANYE

Fuentes was alongside Kanye during the InfoWars interview, whereas Milo wasn't ... which seems to suggest this change happened over the past few days. Then again, we got video of NF at an In-N-Out just 2 days ago, without Kanye in sight, so who knows what's going on.

As for Milo ... well, it's probably for the best. Despite his efforts to get Kanye on different conservative-leaning podcasts of late -- a lot of them crumbled, like when he walked off the set of Tim Pool's podcast earlier in the week after some pushback on his antisemitism.

No word if Ye was holding that against Milo -- as opposed to, you know, himself -- but in any case ... it sounds like Kanye wants to pursue the presidency without him (and yes, that does in fact seem to be a thing again, YE24).

One fringe associate down ... one to go!

Elon Musk Set to Drop New Batch of #TwitterFiles ... On Hunter Biden Laptop

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Elon Musk is doing a new file dump that he says reflects Twitter's alleged efforts to suppress stories about Hunter Biden's laptop in 2020 ... causing a lot of outrage in right wing circles.

The Twit in Chief is set to follow up with another day of #TwitterFiles Saturday, which took the bird app by storm over the past 24 hours ... this after the initial batch detailed alleged correspondence between former Twitter staffers and execs, suggesting they were censoring negative HB news.

Specifically, the internal emails cited by journo Matt Taibbi show how Twitter's ex-head honchos apparently went out of their way to hide links to a story by the New York Post.

Published about a month before the election, it was touted as a bombshell report -- which purported to describe messages the NYP says it retrieved from Hunter's forsaken laptop ... and one of those seems to indicate Ukrainian gas bigwigs were trying to meet President Biden via his son, who was in business with these folks at the time (around 2015 or so).

When this went live in 2020, any attempts to tweet links to the story were barred en masse on Twitter ... and now, these #TwitterFiles pretty much seem to confirm it was, in fact, a coordinated effort in-house. The more troubling part, though ... some of the emails appear to imply that Twitter was actually in touch with Biden's campaign team ... and conceding to their requests to kill the story, as they claimed the information had been hacked/stolen.

Twitter obliged, citing its terms and conditions to justify the move -- not to mention the fact the info discussed hadn't been independently verified -- but since then ... a majority of the materials on the laptop were authenticated as legit. The laptop was also deemed abandoned property after somebody turned it into a shop in 2019 ... eventually finding its way into the hands of conservative operatives who ran with it and publicized its salacious contents.

In the end, however, the Hunter Biden chatter really amounted to nothing in the big picture.

There's been a lot of handwringing in and around the GOP over this for a full two years -- but now that these apparent revelations are coming to light ... many are calling for congressional hearings and investigations into what they characterize as corruption/election interference. Basically, their argument is ... Twitter blocked something that could've, perhaps, swung the election in Trump's favor -- and they're calling on POTUS to answer for it.

Of course, people on the other side are calling this a big nothingburger -- but time will tell if anything comes of it. Meanwhile, Elon's just wielding his big free speech stick.

President Biden Celeb Pals Hit Up 1st State Dinner Welcome France's Macron

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Hollywood is back at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., where President Biden's finally getting to entertain a foreign dignitary -- French President Emmanuel Macron -- as well as famous supporters.

Thursday night marks the return of swanky state dinners ... as the COVID pandemic forced Biden to cancel such events for the first 2 years of his administration, but the celebs are flocking back to the White House. No shocker.

John Legend and Chrissy Teigen are in the house, along with Stephen Colbert, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jennifer Garner and Ariana DeBose.

Apple CEO Tim Cook scored an invite too ... he's having a pretty loaded week, just yesterday he was meeting with Elon Musk at Apple HQ in Cali, smoothing things over with Twitter.

All the pomp and circumstance is for France ... Biden's working to repair the U.S. relationship with the European power.

These celebs are among 300 guests at the black-tie dinner, with folks dining on the best cheese America can offer Macron ... plus Maine lobster, beef with shallot marmalade and triple-cooked butter potatoes.

There's live music too ... Dr. Jill Biden booked Grammy-winning musician and composer Jon Batiste, in part because he's from New Orleans, which Jill notes "has been shaped by both French and American culture."

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THE STARS ARE OUT

Could be a fun night, as long as Macron's not offended by our fromage selection.

Prince William Condemns His Godmother ... For Alleged Racist Grilling of Black CEO

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Prince William is speaking out against racism that's been alleged against his godmother -- who's also a high-ranking Buckingham Palace aide.

Reps for the Prince of Wales says he is "really disappointed" by the account shared by Ngozi Fulani about Lady Susan Hussey, adding ... "Racism has no place in our society, these comments were unacceptable and it's right that the individual concerned has stepped down."

Hussey -- a Royal courtier, who works for Queen Consort Camilla and who served Queen Elizabeth II for years prior to her death -- resigned from her post after Fulani publicly detailed an uncomfortable interrogation she says Lady Hussey put her through Tuesday at Buckingham Palace.

Fulani, who heads up a nonprofit in the UK for DV survivors of color, says she was in attendance for an event Camilla hosted to raise awareness for violence against women ... and that's when Hussey approached her.

Fulani claims Hussey moved her hair out of the way to view her name tag, and then went on to ask where she was from -- which NF says turned into a back-and-forth about where her ancestors were from.

Fulani, at first, identified the org she was with -- Sistah Space -- but she says Hussey wanted to know what part of the world she was from. Fulani says she told Hussey she was British, but Hussey apparently wouldn't accept that ... pressing for her regional heritage.

When Fulani explained that she was of African heritage, Caribbean descent and British nationality ... she says Hussey butted in and flippantly said, "Oh, so you're from ..." Fulani says the interaction left her disillusioned the rest of the time she was there.

When she posted this on Twitter, it went viral ... and Buckingham Palace issued an apology on behalf of Hussey, adding ... "All members of the household are being reminded of the diversity and inclusivity policies which they are required to uphold at all times."

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BP also said they'd reached out to Fulani personally and extended an invite if she wanted to discuss things further. Despite this, the backlash mounting has been swift and fierce.

Of course, Meghan Markle's claims of institutional racism come to mind, and some people feel it's vindication for her. The fact something like this could've happened so casually to a Black woman has left folks wondering ... what else might've been said in passing during MM's time with the Royals.

Donald Trump Hurls Insults At Mitch McConnell ... Over Infamous Kanye West/Nick Fuentes Dinner

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Donald Trump blasted Mitch McConnell Tuesday over the senator's brutal comments about DT's infamous Kanye West/Nick Fuentes dinner ... and his chances at becoming president again.

Trump lampooned Mitch during an interview with Fox News Digital, calling the Senate Minority Leader "a loser for our nation and for the Republican Party."

Earlier in the day, McConnell (R-Kentucky) had met with reporters in D.C. and condemned Trump for meeting with Kanye and Fuentes -- a white nationalist -- at the former president's Mar-a-Lago estate last week.

"There is no room in the Republican Party for antisemitism or white supremacy," McConnell said. "And anyone meeting with people advocating that point of view, in my judgment, are highly unlikely to ever be elected president of the United States." Trump recently announced his 2024 bid for the White House again.

In his chat with FOX News, DT reiterated he didn't have a clue who Fuentes was during their "very quick dinner." And, if Fuentes had voiced any white supremacist views, which he apparently didn't do, Trump said they "wouldn't have been accepted." He did not explain why he'd meet with Kanye on the heels of his nonstop antisemitic rants.

Trump went on to say the only reason he agreed to the meeting was to give advice to Ye, pointing out he "heard Kanye had difficulties, including financial difficulties." DT added Kanye asked for the face-to-face, which 45 described as "uneventful."

Landmark Same-Sex Marriage Bill Wins Overwhelming Bipartisan Senate Support ... Protection on the Horizon

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Gay marriage, which is on the U.S. Supreme Court's chopping block, may have gotten a reprieve, because the United States Senate just voted to create significant same-sex marriage protections into federal law ... and even a number of conservatives gave a thumbs up.

The vote was lopsided --  61-to-36 -- with 12 Republican senators voting in favor during Tuesday night's vote. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was NOT among them.

The House of Representatives has already passed a bill protecting gay marriage, but the Senate added a provision that religious organizations won't have to open their door for gay marriage. The bill now goes back to the House to approve the change.

The House is expected to approve the change and it will then go to Biden's desk for signature. Biden said earlier this month ... "Love is love, and Americans should have the right to marry the person they love."

The bill does not create a mandate that all states must legalize same-sex marriage. What it does is require every state to recognize gay marriages performed in other states. So, Alabama does not allow gay people to marry within its borders, but if 2 gay people got married in California and moved to Alabama, they would have all the legal protections that a straight couple would have.

The clock has been ticking ... Republicans will control the house in January, so the fate of the bill would be dicey ... and that's why there's a swift move to sign the bill.

The wild card ... the Supreme Court could decide issues of marriage should be left entirely to the states and not the federal government, so there's a chance the conservative majority could undo a federal marriage protection law.

Donald Trump Goes Off On Kanye Over Nick Fuentes Dinner... 'You're Just a Lunatic, Ye'!!!!

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Donald Trump is slamming Kanye West -- calling him "seriously troubled" ... for showing up with "white nationalist" Nick Fuentes to their supposed one-on-one meeting.

The 45th President posted a fiery message to his Truth Social platform Saturday night ... saying Ye crossed the line by bringing Fuentes and others to Mar-a-Lago for the dinner.

DT said ... "So I help a seriously troubled man, who just happens to be black, Ye (Kanye West), who has been decimated in his business and virtually everything else, and who has always been good to me, by allowing his request for a meeting at Mar-a-Lago, alone, so that I can give him very much needed "advice."

Trump went on ... "He shows up with 3 people, two of which I didn’t know, the other a political person who I haven’t seen in years. I told him don’t run for office, a total waste of time, can’t win. Fake News went CRAZY!"

As we reported ... Ye and Fuentes were filmed walking together Tuesday at Miami International Airport. Kanye also tweeted he was going to meet with DT ... "First time at Mar-a-Lago. Rain and traffic. Can't believe I kept President Trump waiting. And I had on jeans. Yikes. What you guys think his response was when I asked him to be my running mate in 2024?"

Then, on Thursday, Kanye released a video announcing his 2024 candidacy and mentioning his get-together with Trump and Fuentes. The rapper also claimed Trump made degrading remarks about Kim Kardashian.

As a result, Trump issued an initial statement... "Kanye West very much wanted to visit Mar-a-Lago. Our dinner meeting was intended to be Kanye and me only, but he arrived with a guest whom I had never met and knew nothing about." But, DT curiously left out how Fuentes was able to pass through Mar-a-Lago security.

As for Fuentes, he confirmed the details of the meeting to Axios, saying he was "embarrassed" it had caused such a stir. He has been labeled a white nationalist for his hateful views -- which is something he denies.

Elon Musk 'I'm Supporting Ron DeSantis For Prez In 2024...' Donald Who?

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Ron DeSantis just got a major endorsement from the world's richest man.

Elon Musk says he's throwing his considerable support behind DeSantis if the Florida governor decides to run for President in 2024. Elon's message was an obvious slap in the face to Donald Trump, who recently announced his candidacy to win back the White House.

Musk started the ball rolling Friday night when he responded to a question from a Twitter user, asking if he would back DeSantis. The new Twitter CEO simply stated, "Yes. But Twitter as a platform must be fair to all.”

Elon later posted another tweet ... “As a reminder, I was a significant supporter of the Obama-Biden presidency and (reluctantly) voted for Biden over Trump. My preference for the 2024 presidency is someone sensible and centrist. I had hoped that would [be] the case for the Biden administration, but have been disappointed so far.”

It's interesting ... Musk claims he's not a conservative ... but he directed his millions of Twitter followers to vote Republican in the last midterm elections. He has also come under attack from Democrats, including President Biden, who has asked the Justice Department to investigate Elon's foreign business practices.

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MUSK'S THE MAN

Meanwhile ... DeSantis has shown Elon some love, too, publicly praising Musk for giving his Starlink internet satellite technology to Ukraine in its war against Russia. Elon was blasted on social media after he toyed with the idea of stopping the free-of-charge service, which was costing him a fortune.

Looks like Ron and Elon are on the same team...for now.

Kanye West Donald Trump Hurled Insults at Kim

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Kanye West released his first video for his 2024 presidential run, and he claims Donald Trump has some super unkind things to say about his then-wife, Kim Kardashian, but what exactly 45 allegedly said is a mystery.

Ye, who posted the vid on Twitter, says Trump was pissed when he suggested a demotion -- that Trump become his Veep ... "I think the thing Trump was most perturbed about [was] me asking him to be my vice president. I think that was lower on the list of things that caught him off guard."

It seems he's saying this conversation occurred recently at Mar-a-Lago.

Kanye says Trump told him he released Alice Johnson not because of Kim but because of him, and then claimed Trump lobbed some insults about Kim. What those insults are -- well, we don't know because there's a big 'ol bleep over the comment.

Kanye, who did not declare he's running although he has said it in the past, had some convoluted things to say about the January 6th insurrectionists -- that he challenged Trump for not "acting to legally protect those who invaded the U.S. Capitol Building ..."

Ye says Trump yelled at him during their encounter, saying he "started basically screaming at me at the table, telling me I am going to lose," then laughing as he added, "Has that worked for anyone in history?"

And Kanye urged Trump to get the band back together, as in Steve Bannon and crew.