United States president Donald Trump and his legal team are using Eminem as a reference in their recent filing to dismiss a lawsuit over the infamous January 6 riots.
In the documents obtained by AllHipHop, Trump cited a “rapper defense” to fight allegations that he incited the infamous riots at the Capitol in 2021. After losing an initial dismissal attempt, Trump is appealing, arguing his January 6 speech falls under protected political expression. His lawyers likened his rhetoric to controversial rap lyrics, citing past Supreme Court cases where violent lyrics were deemed artistic expression and not incitement.
Trump’s team didn’t explicitly mention Eminem’s name but it’s obvious they are referring to Slim Shady as the court documents read: “A rapper rockets to the top of the charts for his aggressive, provocative lyrics that become wildly popular nationwide, particularly among angsty teenagers. He is ranked as one of the most controversial lyricists of all time. Many of his lyrics describe explicit violent acts, including gun violence, r*pe, and a description of the rapper drowning his wife. While at times, the rapper’s lyrics suggest that his work is not intended to encourage or endorse actual violence, other lyrics suggest the contrary.”
It then continues: “Nothing in President Trump’s speech even came close to the far more incendiary language that the Supreme Court has held to be protected as a matter of law. President Trump’s January 6 speech…is properly characterized as ‘strong protests against the government and prevailing social order’ – a context that demands the highest deference to speech and protection from censorship.”
