John Legend warned that some Americans might have to seriously start considering leaving the U.S. if President Donald Trump is re-elected in November. In a new interview with Cosmopolitan U.K., the pop star argued that Trump is conducting a project to “destroy democracy” in the U.S. He thought that people whose rights are genuinely at stake might consider leaving for their safety.
“At some point, if that project [to destroy democracy] was to be in any way successful, you’d have to think about going somewhere that is a true democracy, that has respect for the rule of law and human rights,” Legend said. “If America chooses to be that place then people will have to start thinking about going somewhere else. It is truly disturbing and concerning.” Still, Legend said that he is “not nervous” about the 2020 presidential election, believing that Trump will lose. He believes that the whole country is “exhausted” by the president’s antics.
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Legend said that he personally thinks about leaving the U.S. “every once in a while,” but only if Trump is re-elected. He remarked on the president’s “daily efforts to destroy democracy and the free press.”
“We were born and raised here, all of our families are here. It would be hard to leave. But I don’t know what one’s supposed to do when you have a leader who is trying to destroy democracy,” he said. At the same time, “We can’t bear another four years of this. “As Michelle Obama said, we have to vote like our lives depend on it. I honestly think the American people will do it. I truly don’t know if we would be a democracy when we were done if we went another four years.”
Legend and his wife, model and author Chrissy Teigen, are outspoken critics of Trump and have even caught his personal attention at times. Legend performed at the DNC 2020 last month, and Trump called the performance “boring.” He once referred to Teigen as Legend’s “filthy-mouthed wife” as well.
Legend and Teigen have both publicly endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden and made frequent political commentary on Twitter. This weekend, they were joined by another A-list star: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who endorsed Biden early on Sunday morning. He posted a five-minute video chat between himself, Biden and vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
The 2020 presidential election is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 3. Voting procedures and absentee ballot rules vary from state to state, but the guidelines are easy to find online.
