Real estate mogul Donald Trump clearly hasn't listened closely to the lyrics of "Rockin' in the Free World." With its references to "a thousand points of light" and "a kinder, gentler nation," Neil Young was talking smack about President George H.W. Bush's brand of conservatism in the 1989 anthem.
That didn't keep Trump from blasting the song as he took the stage at New York City's Trump Tower on Tuesday to announce he'd seek the Republican nomination for president.
Maybe this will: Hours later, Young's manager, Elliot Roberts,
issued the following statement:
"Donald Trump was not authorized to use ‘Rockin' in the Free World’ in his presidential candidacy announcement. Neil Young, a Canadian citizen, is a supporter of Bernie Sanders for president of the United States of America."
As if he needed backup, CSNY bandmate and fellow badass David Crosby
tweeted, "Trump has picked a fight with the wrong guy ... bad idea."
Young appears to be on a serious Vermont kick these days.
In addition to endorsing Vermont's iconoclastic senator, he's been boycotting Starbucks since last November. Young
claims the coffee chain "has teamed up with Monsanto to sue Vermont" over the state's genetically-modified organism labeling law. Though Starbucks
has said that's not the case, Young has
stuck to his guns, citing the company's membership in the Grocery Manufacturers Association, which
is suing Vermont.
Most importantly, next month Young is
playing his first show in the Green Mountain State since he and his fellow Mynah Birds
played Killington's Wobbly Barn in October 1965.
Will Sanders,
a noted singer in his own right, join Young at the Champlain Valley Expo for a rousing rendition of "Cortez the Killer?"
Hey hey, my my!