Many liberals were excited about Sean “P Diddy” Combs and his 2004 Vote or Die campaign to encourage young people to the polls. However, during an interview on Thursday, CBS This Morning’s Gayle King acknowledged the singer's disillusionment with politics and apparent disappointment with Barack Obama. Combs also declined to announce support of Hillary Clinton.
After playing a clip of Combs lobbying Obama to run for President way back in 2004, the entertainer reflected, “But I thought that because... we were delivering a vote for him, that the politics game, I thought would apply to us.”
In other interviews, Combs has said that African Americans “got a little bit shortchanged” from the President. In the intervening years, the singer has started his own charter school for poor kids in Harlem and increased his charitable giving.
Sounding skeptical of government solutions, he insisted, “[I’m] not get[ting] involved in politics because I think politics is a bunch of bull [bleep]. I'm not going complain about it. I'm going to go do something about it.”
King, who is a Democratic donor, must not have liked having to tell viewers this:
GAYLE KING: I asked him who he is supporting in this election campaign, he said, "I am withholding my vote. I'm going to wait and look at all the debates. Right now I'm undecided and then I'll make a decision."
A partial transcript is below:
CBS TM
9/29/16
8:38SEAN “P DIDDY” COMBS: Like, one of the things I've been going through this year is just change, like, where do I go from now?
GAYLE KING: Do you ever think about getting in politics yourself? You were Vote or Die.
[file footage]
COMBS: Introduce yourself again for me, sir.
BARACK OBAMA: I'm Barack Obama. I'm the U.S. Senate candidate from the state of Illinois.
COMBS: I met Obama and, you know, I interviewed him.
[File footage from 2004]
COMBS: When you want to be the president of the United States? You call your man. [Back to interview.] I want to make sure that I'm very clear. I love what this president has done. But I thought that because we were — we were delivering a vote for him, that the politics game, I thought would apply to us. And when you look at the things that are affecting, you know, African-American kids in our communities, there's no hope. People have to understand, like, even things, like the whole shootings of — there's too many. It's way too many and nothing is being done.
KING: You're talking about the shootings with black men?
COMBS: Yes.
KING: By police officers?
COMBS: It's just been too much — it's too much of a trend right now.
...
[In front of charter school students.]
COMBS: These are our students right here. Give them a round of applause.
KING: You could call 2016 a transformational year for Diddy. When he didn't on tour, philanthropy took center stage.
COMBS: I would like to give you this to start my new scholarship fund.
KING: He donated a million dollars to Howard University, the school from which he never graduated. And he opened a charter school in Harlem, the New York City neighborhood where he was born.
COMBS: This is leveling the playing field. Capital Prep right here. We make sure our students get a fair chance. [Talking to King.] At this time in my life I decided to make a move from "me" to “we." I felt I had did enough of "me" and time to go to "we." That is the whole thing and not get involved in politics because I think politics is a bunch of bull [bleeped ]. I'm not going complain about it. I'm going to go do something about it.
KING: He is going to go do something. And when I asked him who he is supporting in this election campaign, he said, “I am withholding my vote. I’m going to wait and look at all the debates. Right now I’m undecided and then I’ll make a decision.”
