Rock icon Bruce Springsteen delivered a blunt message to President Donald Trump and his administration on Tuesday night during a politically charged tour opener in Minneapolis.
“The America that I love, the America that I’ve written about for 50 years, that’s been a beacon of hope and liberty around the world, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent, racist, reckless and treasonous administration,” Springsteen said at the start of the show to cheers from the audience.
He called on the crowd to choose “resistance over complacency, unity over division and peace over war,” with that last word signaling the start of a rousing cover of The Temptations’ “War” followed by his 1984 hit, “Born In The U.S.A.”
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Later in the show, Springsteen accused Trump and his “corrupt White House” of turning the United States into a “reckless, unpredictable, predatory rogue nation.”
“This is happening now,” he repeated throughout his comments.
Variety reported that Springsteen slammed Trump for waging an “unconstitutional and illegal war,” for “abandoning NATO” and for threatening “our neighbors and our allies.”
“Our museums are being told to whitewash American history of any unpleasant or inconvenient facts like the full history of the brutality of slavery. You want to talk about snowflakes? We have a president who can’t handle the truth.”
Springsteen also lashed out at Attorney General Pam Bondi.
“She prosecutes our president’s perceived enemies, covers up for his misdeeds,” he said. “and protects his powerful friends.”
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Springsteen and his E Street Band were joined by Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello for the show, which was nearly three hours long.
Springsteen has a habit of getting under Trump’s skin. Last year, he spoke out against Trump during a tour of Europe. That triggered a social media meltdown in which the president attacked Springsteen as “a pushy, obnoxious JERK” and “dried out ‘prune.’”
Trump also told Springsteen to “KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT.” Springsteen has done just the opposite.
Earlier this year, he released the anthemic protest song, “Streets of Minneapolis,” after federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti and Renee Good ― two Americans who were protesting against Trump and his violent immigration crackdown in the city.
Soon after, Springsteen announced his “Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour,” which he will bring to Trump’s doorstep when it wraps up in Washington, D.C., in May.
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