*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).
Video released Monday shows Los Angeles police firing at a man suspected of assaulting customers last week at a clothing store, a shooting that also killed a 14-year-old girl who had been hiding in a dressing room.
Riot Games, the publisher behind esports giant “League of Legends,” agreed to pay $100 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging pay disparity, gender discrimination and sexual harassment.
Carlo and Baker cover the new CDC quarantine guidelines, the prospects of a vax mandate for air travel and more.
In 2019, a truck driver in Colorado crashed into traffic killing several people, and causing a 28 car pile up. Today, the driver, Rogel Lazaro Aguilera-Mederos is serving a sentence of 110 years in prison. The sentence is causing outrage, and supporters of Aguilera-Meredos have started a petition asking colorado's governor to step in. this petition has now reached over 4 million signatures. Karen Nance, criminal defense attorney & former prosecutor, and Megan Schrader, opinion editor, Denver Post join cheddar news to discuss.
New Year celebrations are approaching and across the world there is an urge to party. But the desire to let loose is being countered by the highly transmissible omicron variant.
All the news you missed over the holiday weekend, including calls for the CDC to shorten its isolation window as Omicron sweeps through the country.
For video games, 2021 was about growth and the arrival of new frontiers, like the metaverse and NFTs. But, the sector also struggled with lingering problems that cast a pall over the entire industry, from supply chain constraints to the persistent issue of workplace misconduct.
Small businesses are finding a lifeline for marketing and sales in getting eyeballs on their products and services via TikTok and Instagram. Senior reporter Michelle Castillo reports.
Jurors have convicted a suburban Minneapolis police officer of first-degree and second-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Black motorist Daunte Wright.
Revelers will still ring in the new year in New York’s Times Square next week, there just won’t be as many as usual under new COVID-19 restrictions
