Opinion: Anything Trump can do Kanye could do better

Kanye West for president? It is not as far fetched as it may seem. This past week, Kanye West announced he's running for president in 2020 at the MTV Video Music Awards. Some have laughed at the idea of West running for president; however it could be a reality. West has no political experience, tons of capital, doesn’t care what people think of him and has a lot of media attention. Sound familiar? Cue Donald Trump.Kanye and Trump have a lot in common. Jimmy Kimmel made that very clear in a video this past week that depicted the similarities: both men have the desire for people to like them. Kanye and Trump both have repeatedly bashed the media on their quest for ratings. West said he smoked something before he came out for his speech; Trump is for medical marijuana. They also both have people who boo them.The idea of a rapper running for president sounds like a publicity stunt; it very well could be for West. However, if Trump can lead political polls for the Republican party and head-to-head polls against Hillary Clinton, why can’t Kanye give Republicans a run for their money?Kanye can easily relate to the popular culture of America. In the United States popular culture surpasses politics. Citizens care about celebrities more than they do about a presidential election.  According to the Washington Post, 10-percent of Americans who are not registered to vote never follow politics. How many of those individuals follow Kim Kardashian? I would imagine a lot of them. Kardashian (who is married to West) has 35 million followers on Twitter. People would honestly back Kanye if he ran for president with Kim Kardashian being a possible first lady. This past week, Taylor Swift also volunteered to be Kanye’s running mate for president. Although Swift is not of the legal age to be Vice President, she does have 63.1 million followers on Twitter. She could be a campaign manager. With Kanye’s backers, he could have some great poll numbers.West does have some political ideas that are prevalent in his music. Of course, in many of Kanye’s songs, he makes it very clear how he feels about marijuana. He does have other political views that are overlooked, though. People Magazine broke down what his possible platform could look like through his music. In West’s song “Good Life,” West says, "Whether you broke or rich you gotta get this/Having money's not everything, not havin' it is." On the economy, West could portray the struggle so many Americans have with a minimum wage that is too low.With the race and crime issues that have circulated within the past year, Kanye could have some strong views on crime. In his song “No Church in the Wild,” he stated, “Deception is the only felony,” which could be interpreted by some to reflect criticisms of the criminal justice system. Many also do not know Kanye West’s father, Ray West, had a background in politics: Ray West is a former Black Panther member, according the  Rolling Stone biography of the artist. Kanye could have more unique opinions on political issues as Donald Trump has had so far.Kanye is also an Israeli sympathizer, as he states in his song “Clique.” "S--- is real, got me feeling Israelian.” He has some knowledge in international relations. In “We Don’t Care,” Kanye discusses briefly the lacking after-school programs in society.Kanye could be a presidential candidate. He has feelings about various issues and he has people around him, like Kim K., that Americans care about. To break it down in the simplest way possible, if Trump can do it, why can't Kanye?