Kanye West lit some fireworks this July 4th by announcing, vaguely and with little follow-up, that he is running for president.

“We must now realize the promise of America by trusting God, unifying our vision and building our future. I am running for president of the United States,” he tweeted, adding an American flag and the hashtag 2020VISION.

It is unclear if West, who once rapped “now, if I fuck this model, and she just bleached her asshole, and I get bleach on my T-shirt, I’ma feel like an asshole,” is speaking metaphorically.

His tweet did receive what appears to be non-verbal approval from his wife (and future First Lady?) Kim Kardashian West, who quote-tweeted him with an American flag emoji.

Also, West’s friend Elon Musk (of whom West had recently shared a pair of images showing interchangeable outfits), quickly chimed in with his support. (Vying for that Martian Ambassadorship, no doubt!)

The fact remains that the United States of America was founded on the principle that, at least in theory, anyone could hold the executive office. No More Kings! So could Kanye actually make a play for the presidency?

Yahoo! News’s White House Correspondent Hunter Walker took time away from his Independence Day BBQ to look into it. He tweeted that it is too late for West, running as an independent, to get on a ballot in nine states. Among those states are Texas, New York, and Illinois, which have a great impact on the electoral college.

This is, of course, not the first time West has made his interest in higher office known. In August 2015, while accepting MTV’s Video Vanguard Award, he concluded an 11-minute speech by saying “and yes, as you probably could have guessed by this moment, I have decided in 2020 to run for president."

In the intervening years, West has tilted rightward, aligning himself with Donald Trump, wearing a red MAGA hat, and suggesting that African American slavery was a choice. (He later apologized.)

Reaction online was the predictable mayhem. Here are a few of the good ones.

— Author Uzodinma Iweala on White Signs at Black Protests
— “George Floyd Was Killed in My Neighborhood”
— 15 Years After Katrina, a Second Storm—Coronavirus—Hits New Orleans
— How Meghan Markle Decided to Finally Speak Out About George Floyd
— Nikkita Oliver on Seattle’s Extraordinary Protests and What Comes Next
— Where J.K. Rowling’s Transphobia Comes From
— From the Archive: The Origin of “Strange Fruit,” Billie Holiday’s Ballad Against Racism

Looking for more? Sign up for our daily newsletter and never miss a story.