A former reality star is currently Commander-in-Chief and things are going so swimmingly that more entertainers have decided there's no time like the present to enter the world of politics.
Case in point: Trump supporter Kid Rock, who you may recall seized the opportunity to disrespect Hillary Clinton's portrait during a recent White House visit, has officially announced that he's running for the Michigan U.S. Senate seat currently occupied by Democrat Debbie Stabenow.
Rumors of a potential Kid Rock run have been circulating since February, when his name was floated as a possible candidate at a Michigan Republican Party convention.
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The singer launched an official Kid Rock for U.S. Senate website this week. Some thought the site, which includes the headline "Are You Scared?" was a cruel joke, but Rock took to Twitter to confirm that he's indeed running for Senate in 2018.
I have had a ton of emails and texts asking me if this website is real… https://t.co/RRVgISDFeq The answer is an absolute YES. pic.twitter.com/uYCUg6mjW1
— Kid Rock (@KidRock) July 12, 2017
Stabenow has wasted no time in preparing for a potential face-off with Kid Rock. “This afternoon, Kid Rock tweeted out that he was going to have a big announcement and hinted that he was going to challenge me for the U.S. Senate,” a fundraising email from Stabenow’s campaign read. "We don’t know if this is real or just a publicity stunt, but after Donald Trump's surprising win last year, we need to act fast.”
Although it's still very early in the race, Stabenow's campaign is wise to take immediate action. In a surprising turn of events, Trump won Michigan's 16 Electoral votes by 0.3%. The state is typically considered part of Democrats' "firewall" and his victory margin was extremely narrow, but Obama won by 9.5% in 2012, signaling that Michigan is swinging right.
Plenty of Twitter users have made clear that they are so not here for the idea of Kid Rock occupying a Senate seat.
— Philip Lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) July 12, 2017
Fixed it. pic.twitter.com/IvnM5ywYdy
— Comedy Central (@ComedyCentral) July 12, 2017
— Mark Sundstrom (@106th) July 12, 2017
We are all dead and this is clearly Hell
— Roland Scahill (@rolandscahill) July 12, 2017
Trump's astoundingly low approval ratings will likely give Democrats a leg up in the 2018 midterm elections, but as the Stabenow campaign noted, literally anything is possible and we shouldn't take any seats for granted.