Nicki Minaj entered the political conversation, and tensions skyrocketed when a senior staff member for California Governor Gavin Newsom took a nasty jab at the rapper, calling her a “stupid hoe.”
The situation began after Minaj expressed her disapproval of Governor Newsom’s emphasis on his pro-trans agenda, particularly his recent aim to “see trans kids,” which he mentioned in a New York Times interview.
On Friday, Minaj didn’t hold back her thoughts on Newsom’s priorities. She argued that a responsible adult should focus on ensuring all children are “HEALTHY, SAFE, HAPPY,” rather than focusing on a single subgroup.
Minaj went on to predict a bleak future for the Democratic Governor, tweeting, “Oh Gavvy pooh, it only gets worse from here for you, buddy. It’s the end of the road for you, my love.” She humorously suggested he should “Get on the nearest jet ski & let that beautiful hair blow in the wind. It will make you happier than this race that you will not win.”
Newsom’s team, however, responded in an “unprofessional” manner. On Saturday, Izzy Gardon, the Governor’s director of communications, fired back indirectly on social media by posting a disrespectful image. He shared a photo of a t-shirt featuring Minaj’s name and face inside a trash bin, captioned simply with the insulting phrase: “Stupid Hoe.”
This reaction sparked outrage, with many condemning Gardon for using such a derogatory term against a Black woman, particularly coming from a person in a political position.
In an attempt to defend his actions amid the backlash, Gardon claimed that his comment was merely a nod to Minaj’s 2011 song, also titled “Stupid Hoe.” In a strange rebuttal, he went on to criticize those who were outraged, suggesting that anyone who couldn’t recognize “Stupid Hoe” as “Nicki Minaj’s best song” was not a “certified homosexual.”
Nevertheless, his choice to use a highly charged insult, even as a reference to a song, failed to quell the significant backlash.
