The casual observer could be forgiven for assuming that, even as ten thousand illegal immigrants amassed under a Texas bridge and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs stood credibly accused of treason, one of the most significant news stories last month concerned something Nicki Minaj said on Twitter.
For revealing that she declined to attend the Met Gala because organizers had implemented a Covid vaccine mandate, the rapper and social media raconteur was the subject of late-night roasts, internet memes, and tabloid puns. And that was all to be expected — a professional hazard of being an internationally famous pop star. Less axiomatic was the focus ostensibly serious journalists and government officials turned her way.


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