Jack White condemns “dictator” Donald Trump after election win
Former White Stripes leader Jack White has condemned the newly-elected President of the United States, Donald Trump, labelling him an “obvious fascist” and “wannabe dictator”.
This is not the first time the garage rock hero has publicly blasted Trump. In August, he revealed that he was planning on launching legal action against the business tycoon for using ‘Seven Nation Army’ in a video posted on social media while on this year’s election trail.
Before that, when Trump began using the White Stripes classic on his original 2016 campaign trail, he began selling shirts saying ‘Icky Trump’, referencing his old band’s song ‘Icky Thump’. He’s also endorsed Bernie Sanders in 2020 and condemned Elon Musk and Twitter/X for allowing Trump back on the platform after their takeover.
After the news of Trump beating Democratic rival Kamala Harris broke, with the Republican nominee set to serve a second non-consecutive term, many Americans took to social media to share their feelings. The mass of responses reflects a country deeply polarised politically, economically, and spiritually. Naturally, White was among those who saw the election as a damning day for the US.
He shared an Instagram post on November 6th, featuring a graphic of a Turkish proverb that reads: “The forest was shrinking but the trees kept voting for the axe, for the axe was clever and convinced the trees that because his handle was made of wood he was one of them.”
In a lengthy post lamenting the present state of America, White started: “Trump won the popular vote. End of story. Americans chose a known, obvious fascist and now America will get whatever this wannabe dictator wants to enact from here on in. We all know what he is capable of: Project 2025, deportations, nationwide abortion ban, ending his own 2 termlimit, backing Putin and his war, shutting down the Board of Education, adding to climate change, limiting LGBTQ rights, controlling the DOJ, keeping the minimum wage down, etc. etc. etc.. Any or all of it.”
“It’s absolutely dumbfounding that this con man succeeded in pulling the wool over so many Americans eyes not once,but twice,” White continued. “The racist, impeached, convicted felon and convicted rapist who stole national secrets and hid them in his bathroom, who told us to inject bleach, who wanted to fix hurricanes with nuclear weapons, who insulted handicap people, called military veterans suckers, who incited an insurrection that invaded the nation’s capital for God sakes (!!!), the failed business man who’s ventures have all gone bankrupt, a fake Christian selling bibles and sneakers like a carnival side show, etc etc etc.”
Significantly, White also outlined his issues with Trump’s views: “Immigrants? He wants you out… Minorities? He doesn’t care about you at ALL… Women? You know exactly what he thinks of you. Dying on the stretcher from a miscarriage of your rapist’s pregnancy?”
The Detroit legend sarcastically stated, “Oh well, too bad,” and pointed to “all those rich pricks riding in their Cybertrucks” listening to Joe Rogan, Alex Jones and Steve Bannon podcast, who are “laughing all the way to the bank looking forward to their tax cuts that don’t apply to the middle class.”
Concluding, White painted a very dark picture of his country moving forward: “The citizens placed him in power and now deserve whatever evils he’s going to enact.”
How has the music world reacted to Donald Trump’s election?
White isn’t the only prominent figure in the music world who has reacted negatively to Trump’s election. Perhaps the most famous of them all is pop star Billie Eilish, who’s been a vocal supporter of Kamala Harris. Making her thoughts very clear on the matter after the news was announced, she simply wrote on her Instagram story: “It’s a war on women”.
Elsewhere, actor and comedian Christina Applegate wrote on X: “Why? Give me your reasons why????? My child is sobbing because her rights as a woman may be taken away. Why? And if you disagree, please unfollow me.”
Following Harris’s endorsement by the likes of Bruce Springsteen – who called Trump an “American tyrant” – Beyoncé, Neil Young, Eminem and many more, there is likely to be an array of opinions on Trump’s re-election emerging from the music world in the coming days.
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