NYC Rep. Adriano Espaillat, A$AP Rocky's hometown congressman, has welcomed Donald Trump's personal involvement in the public movement to free the rapper, who was jailed over a street brawl in Stockholm.
Adriano Espaillat, who represents Rocky's native borough of Harlem, admitted that he wasn't sure whether President Trump was “genuine” in wanting to help free the rap star, but said it “doesn't matter” as long as the end goal is achieved.
In an interview with the news outlet TMZ, Espaillat refused to speculate whether Trump's support was a token tactic to channel a new demographic of potential voters in 2020, but made sure that those struggling to get Rocky freed will take any help they can muster, including from POTUS.
According to Espaillat, Trump vouching for Rocky's bail was “somewhat irrelevant”, as money, he pointed out, was not the real issue here.
Previously, Trump tweeted that he was about to call “the very talented Prime Minister of Sweden” over Rocky's fate after a tip-off from fellow rap star Kanye West.
Just spoke to @KanyeWest about his friend A$AP Rocky’s incarceration. I will be calling the very talented Prime Minister of Sweden to see what we can do about helping A$AP Rocky. So many people would like to see this quickly resolved!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 19 июля 2019 г.
Later, Trump tweeted an update about having “a very good call” with Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven, who assured that A$AP Rocky, a US citizen, was treated fairly. The Swedish prime minister described his country's judicial system as independent.
Just had a very good call with @SwedishPM Stefan Löfven who assured me that American citizen A$AP Rocky will be treated fairly. Likewise, I assured him that A$AP was not a flight risk and offered to personally vouch for his bail, or an alternative....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 20 июля 2019 г.
“In Sweden, everyone is equally by the law, including visitors from other countries. The Swedish government cannot and will not try and influence prosecutors or courts”, Löfven was quoted by national broadcaster SVT.
A$AP Rocky was detained along with three other people on 5 July following a street brawl in the Swedish capital, where he had performed at the Smash festival. The US rap star is set to remain in Swedish custody until 25 July as the police probe into the fight in downtown Stockholm continues.
Various celebrities close to Donald Trump, including reality TV star Kim Kardashian and her husband, star rapper Kanye West, have been calling on Stockholm to release ASAP Rocky.
Meanwhile, a petition to free Rocky has gathered over 620,000 signatures.
