WASHINGTON — Rapper Kanye West will lunch with President Donald Trump on Thursday to talk about, among other subjects, reducing violence in Chicago, where West grew up.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders on Tuesday said in a statement, “Kanye West is coming to the White House to have lunch with President Trump and he will also meet with Jared Kushner. Topics of discussions will include manufacturing resurgence in America, prison reform, how to prevent gang violence, and what can be done to reduce violence in Chicago.”
West, who maintains ties to the city where he was raised, is married to reality television star Kim Kardashian West, who successfully lobbied Trump to grant a pardon for a non-violent drug offender earlier this year.
The announcement comes the day after Trump once again focused on crime in Chicago, suggesting in an Orlando speech to a police chiefs organization that Chicago police need more stop and frisk powers and an agreement between the Chicago Police Department and the ACLU to address abuses is “terrible.”
Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in reaction to Trump’s comments, “The failed polices he’s talking about have no place for a city that’s working together with communities about how to build—not only trust but a collaborative and cooperative relationship,”
Trump also said Monday he is sending Attorney General Jeff Sessions to the city “immediately.”
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