*By Max Godnick*
Kanye West was slinging optimistic platitudes last month, courting conservative thought leaders, and increasing his public profile.
Could a trip to Iowa be next?
The rapper's recent Twitter activity has caused some pundits to speculate about his political ambitions.
In April, West expressed his "love" for President Trump and wore a "Make America Great Again" hat in [a photo](https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/989222392630202368). He said he "likes the way" the right-wing commentator Candace Owens thinks, and released a new song with the lyric: "I know Obama was heaven-sent, but ever since Trump won, it proved that I could be president."
West had teased a potential White House run in September 2015 at MTV's Video Music Awards, where he announced, "I have decided in 2020 to run for president."
Last week, he appeared to postpone his plan, cryptically tweeting ["2024"](https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/988984329295441921).
"I could see him trying," said Brande Victorian, the managing editor of MadameNoire, a Black women's lifestyle site. "I mean, we didn't think Trump would be here."
Republicans have embraced West's newly-public political musings. Donald Trump Jr. [tweeted a photo](https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/990930382685196288) Monday of West with Owens and the conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Victorian said Tuesday in an interview with Cheddar she was skeptical that West could convince his fans to fully get behind conservatives.
"You're asking virtually everyone who the party does not care about to all of a sudden have empathy for this group, which is nonsensical," she said.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/will-kanye-west-run-for-president).
Marjorie Woods, Owner of Epic Food Group, joins ChedHER to discuss the story behind her company, challenges during the pandemic, and her plans for growth.
The Department of Justice is suing Texas over the state's new abortion law that prohibits abortions after six weeks, well before many women even know they're pregnant. The lawsuit argues the law is unconstitutional under long-standing Supreme Court precedent. It was filed last week in federal court in Texas, but could go all the way to the high court within weeks. Josh Blackman, a constitutional law professor at South Texas College of Law Houston, discusses the DOJ lawsuit and what it could mean for other abortion laws across the country.
The Biden Administration has officially extended a ban on a Trump-era policy that prohibits traveling with a U.S. passport to North Korea. The extension is expected to last until August 2022. The ban was initially enforced after the death of Otto Warmbier, who entered a vegetative state while in North Korean custody. Advocates against the ban argue that it has caused crippling impacts on Korean Americans who have not been able to reunite with their families back home. Senior Fellow at The Foundation For Defense of Democracies Anthony Ruggiero joined Cheddar's News Wrap to discuss more.
In this edition of Tik Talk None Of The Above's J.D. Durkin breaks down the latest trend on TikTok where people sit down to tape a scholarship application video and it all goes off the rails.
