Beyoncé and Jay-Z drew the ire of a couple of Republican senators earlier this month when they took a trip to Cuba on the occasion of their fifth wedding anniversary. After the ruffled politicians called for an investigation into the couple’s jaunt to the travel-restricted nation, Jigga fired back with “Open Letter,” a regal rap that seemed to imply President Obama himself had signed off on the excursion.
“Boy from the hood got White House clearance,” he raps at one point, later adding, “Obama said, ‘Chill, you gonna get me impeached’ / You don’t need this shit anyway, chill with me on the beach.” While even noted rap fan Marco Rubio had beef with the lines on political grounds, Cuban-American pop-rapper Pitbull showed his support in his own surprisingly solid version of the song (as did Common).
Now Obama himself has weighed in via an interview with the co-host of NBC’s Today, Savannah Guthrie. “I wasn’t familiar that they were taking the trip,” the president said in an interview that aired on Wednesday. “My understanding is I think they went through a group that organizes these educational trips down to Cuba. You know, this is not something the White House was involved with. We’ve got better things to do.”
Like, you know, answer trifling questions from morning show hosts. It should be noted that the chat was recorded before the Boston Marathon bombings. Also worth noting: The White House already settled this matter a week ago when press secretary Jay Carney explained that Obama has nothing to do with deciding who does and doesn’t get to go to Cuba. That’s the Treasury’s job, and who cares anyway.
