Rapper Ice Cube Still Backs Obama, 'The Black Kid at a White School That Don’t Nobody Want to Play With'

Time’s Belinda Luscombe offered a somewhat tough “10 Questions” with the rapper Ice Cube for the June 23 issue. She asked how he could rap about being poor – “I’m squeezing the penny so hard a booger came out of Lincoln’s nose” – when he is very wealthy. She asked how much his young kids curse after listening to his music.

But the most interesting part was asking him how the Obama presidency is going. “Mr. Cube,” as she called him, was still totally down with Obama, and busting on whites not wanting to “play” with him in Washington:

LUSCOMBE: How do you think the Obama presidency is going?

ICE CUBE:  I think it’s great with all the obstacles. You couldn’t ask for more.

Obama reminds me of the black kid at a white school that don’t nobody want to play with. That’s fine – he goes in there and do his thing, do what he can.

I think to me he’s done the best job a man in his position can do under the circumstances.

Only the middle part of the answer made the print edition (and they corrected his use of “do” to “does” – he “does his thing, does what he can.”

Here's the actual interview about the profanity in Ice Cube's music:

LUSCOMBE: When did you introduce your music to your kids?

ICE CUBE: As young as they can sit in the car and roll with me. If I’m listening to my demo, they listening to my demo.

LUSCOMBE: Okay, so that’s my kids, too, and now my kids have terrible language. Do your kids have terrible language?

ICE CUBE: Sometimes! [Smiling] But you know all kids got crazy language. They talk a different language. As long as they can get it together when it’s time, I’m fine with that.

LUSCOMBE: So you are fine with whatever they want to say in the house, you don’t say –

ICE CUBE: Ah, no, no -- no, no. No bad language in the house. My thing is, I know kids cuss, they do their thing, but I tell my kids don’t do it in earshot of any adults or you’re in trouble.

Notice how Time edited out the “terrible language” part and “tightened” up (rewrote and rearranged) the exchange in the print edition:

LUSCOMBE: Do your kids use a lot of cuss words?

ICE CUBE: Sometimes, but you know all kidsgot crazy language. I know kids cuss, they do their thing, but I tell my kids don’t do it in earshot of any adults or you’re in trouble.

The “I’m fine with that” is missing along with the “terrible language” moralism.