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Music

Donald Trump Flew Pitbull to Meet Him in a Helicopter, and Pitbull Was Not Impressed with Donald Trump

If there's anything reliable in the world of politics, it's that the fate of the nation lies in the hands of the performer we all know and love.

Image via Wiki Commons

Republicans, Democrats, Hillary, Trump—this election season has been full of suprises and uncertainties. But if there's anything reliable in the world of politics, it's that the fate of the nation lies in the hands of the performer we all know and love, Pitbull.

As we first reported last year, it's long been clear to political observers on both sides of the aisle that Pitbull could play a pivotal role in the 2016 election. As perhaps the most visible Latino celebrity in a country that is expected to be one-third Latino by 2050 and perhaps the most prominent citizen of Florida, a crucial electoral swing state, Pitbull's endorsement is quite a big deal.

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So it's no surprise that Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, has been, according to a new profile of the singer in Vanity Fair, courting Pitbull. After all, on top of all his electoral clout, Pitbull is a powerful figure, someone whose name is a brand that, as Vanity Fair details, is used to propel the sales of everything from Bud Light to Pepsi to Pitbull's fragrance to Pitbull's fashion line After Dark to slot machines bearing Pitbull's likeness. Trump understands strong personal brands; Pitbull is a bit like an alternate universe Trump, if Trump's businesses didn't all go bankrupt and if he were far more likeable.

There's just one little hiccup: Trump has been very publicly racist toward the Latino community, which is not a great way to win the endorsement of Latino icon Pitbull. Pitbull has said as much, announcing last year that he would no longer stay in Trump hotels. But The Donald isn't one to take no for an answer.

“I actually met with Trump,” Pitbull told Vanity Fair. “He flew [me] in his helicopter over to his resort in West Palm Beach. I like to sit down with people and see what they’ve got going on, and if there’s anybody that’s fallen down and got back up… with all the bankruptcies he’s been through—well, you have to respect certain things about him. But I don’t think he knew what he was talking about [when he said those things about Mexicans], and there’s nothing he won’t say to have the limelight. The more outlandish [it is], the more they put it on television.”

The bottom line is: Pitbull would make a better politician than Donald Trump, Donald Trump really wants to get Pitbull's endorsement, that endorsement does not seem to be forthcoming, and, as always, as Pitbull goes, so goes the nation. To reiterate what Pitbull told Buzzfeed News about the election last year, "They can't, they won't, they never will stop the Pitbull party, Dale!"

Pitbull's new album is due later this summer. It is called Climate Change, which is also the title of a scientific phenomenon Donald Trump doesn't believe exists.

Follow Kyle Kramer on Twitter.