Trump criticized after having dinner with Nick Fuentes and Ye at Mar-a-Lago

Former president Donald Trump has come under fire for having dinner with Nick Fuentes and hip-hop artist Ye at his Mar-a-Lago resort earlier this week.

Ye has recently been de-platformed and lost sponsorship deals for antisemitic remarks. Nick Fuentes, who has feuded with Turning Point and Ben Shapiro, is the founder of America First.

Trump made a statement on Truth Social where he said that he did not know the identity of the person who accompanied Ye.

“This past week, Kanye West called me to have dinner at Mar-a-Lago. Shortly thereafter, he unexpectedly showed up with three of his friends, whom I knew nothing about,” Trump in a post on Truth Social.

He added, “We had dinner on Tuesday evening with many members present on the back patio. The dinner was quick and uneventful. They then left for the airport.”

Advisers to Trump privately accepted that Trump’s decision to host Ye and Fuentes for dinner just one week after launching his re-election campaign was a consider. One adviser said the decision was “horribly” and another said it was “totally awful.”

A person close to the dinner event said that two of Trump’s advisers did back up his claim that he didn’t know who Fuentes was. All three spoke on the condition of anonymity.

According to the Washington Post, Karen Giorno, who is a former Trump aide who managed Trump’s Florida campaign in 2016 said she arrived at the club in a car with Ye and Fuentes. She said she didn’t previously know Fuentes and was introduced to him earlier on in the day.

Giorno said Trump greeted Ye, Fuentes and another man identified as Jamal, and “graciously” told Ye and his group that they should join him for dinner at his customary table on the patio.

Giorno said Trump “obviously” recognized her and Ye but did not seem to recognize Fuentes at first. A person familiar with the dinner said West introduced Fuentes as “Nick.”

The dinner reportedly turned sour when Ye asked Trump to be on his 2024 ticket and them Trump “started talking negatively” about Kim Kardashian.