Desperate times call for desperate measures, so MAGA Republican President Donald Trump is now recycling some prior false claims to try to distract his supporters away from the debacle of his Epstein files cover-up that has taken over his presidency.
While in Scotland over the weekend, Trump regurgitated an already debunked claim about Beyoncé and called for her and other Black celebrities to be prosecuted for something that never happened and that wouldn’t be illegal even if it had.
POTUS is trying everything he can to draw attention away from his about-face on his campaign promise to release the files from the Department of Justice's case against convicted sex offender, human trafficker, and friend of Donald, Jeffrey Epstein.
On Sunday evening, Trump took to Truth Social to demand prosecution for Black celebrities who endorsed former Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.
He wrote:
"I’m looking at the large amount of money owed by the Democrats, after the Presidential Election, and the fact that they admit to paying, probably illegally, Eleven Million Dollars to singer Beyoncé for an ENDORSEMENT (she never sang, not one note, and left the stage to a booing and angry audience!), Three Million Dollars for 'expenses', to Oprah, Six Hundred Thousand Dollars to very low rated TV 'anchor', Al Sharpton (a total lightweight!), and others to be named for doing, absolutely NOTHING!"
"These ridiculous fees were incorrectly stated in the books and records. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PAY FOR AN ENDORSEMENT. IT IS TOTALLY ILLEGAL TO DO SO. Can you imagine what would happen if politicians started paying for people to endorse them. All hell would break out! Kamala, and all of those that received Endorsement money, BROKE THE LAW. They should all be prosecuted! Thank you for your attention to this matter."
@@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social
Much of Trump's recent rant echoes similar claims he made in May.
On May 19, Trump posted:
"HOW MUCH DID KAMALA HARRIS PAY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN FOR HIS POOR PERFORMANCE DURING HER CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT? WHY DID HE ACCEPT THAT MONEY IF HE IS SUCH A FAN OF HERS? ISN’T THAT A MAJOR AND ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION? WHAT ABOUT BEYONCÉ? …AND HOW MUCH WENT TO OPRAH, AND BONO???"
"I am going to call for a major investigation into this matter. Candidates aren’t allowed to pay for ENDORSEMENTS, which is what Kamala did, under the guise of paying for entertainment."
"In addition, this was a very expensive and desperate effort to artificially build up her sparse crowds. IT’S NOT LEGAL! For these unpatriotic 'entertainers', this was just a CORRUPT & UNLAWFUL way to capitalize on a broken system."
"Thank you for your attention to this matter!!!"
@@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social
For many, the last sentence in both posts, "Thank you for your attention to this matter," smacks of desperation, as though to say, "please stop paying attention to my longtime relationship with my good buddy Jeffrey Epstein and my refusal to release the records I promised to release."
According to CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale, the Trump administration did not respond to their request for any evidence to support Trump’s claims of the $11 million figure and the other payments, as well as any record of anyone in the Democratic Party admitting the payment happened.
Like almost everything Trump says, no proof was provided to support his claims and none seems to exist.
The latest distraction didn't work any better than his other attempts.
Back in February during a phone interview for Fox News contributor Mark Levin's talk radio program, Trump claimed the Harris/Walz campaign paid artist Beyoncé Knowles Carter $11 million for her appearance at an October 2024 campaign rally in Houston, Texas.
Trump said:
"You know, they go out and they pay Beyonce, as an example. Somebody just showed me something. They gave her $11 million."
Levin asked:
"For what?"
Trump replied:
"An endorsement, I guess, because she didn't sing. They paid Oprah $2 million. They even paid a scam artist named Al Sharpton, total scam artist."
Before the election, the MAGAsphere claimed on social media, without any proof, that Beyoncé was paid $10 million, not $11.
Federal campaign spending records showed a $165,000 payment from the Harris/Walz committee to Beyoncé’s production company for "campaign event production." A spokesperson for the campaign stated celebrities were not paid for endorsements, but campaigns were required by law to cover standard appearance and production costs.
The Trump campaign used the same reason to justify the millions of dollars paid from his campaign coffers to Trump-owned properties and businesses in all three of his presidential campaigns.
Multiple fact-checking organizations tried to find proof of a $10 million payment to Beyoncé, but could find none.
When Trump made the $11 million claim in February, his only proof was "Somebody just showed me something." But that "something" has never materialized.
One point that's easy to prove is that there's no federal law that forbids endorsement payments. So even if there were any truth in Trump's lies, it wouldn't matter.
Looks like Trump will need to find something else to distract the public from the Epstein files.
@SecretaryBurgum/X
@Doug Ellin/X
@evanrachelwood/Instagram