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Explaining the Right<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>is a weekly series that looks at what the right wing is currently obsessing over, how it influences politics\u2014and why you need to know.<\/em><\/p>\n Right-wing advocacy group Turning Point USA<\/span> on Monday <\/span>announced the slate<\/span><\/a> of performers who will appear at its \u201calternative\u201d Super Bowl halftime show. The event is meant to shift attention from Sunday\u2019s official halftime show and its headliner, the pro-immigrant Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny, who was Spotify\u2019s <\/span>top artist of 2025<\/span><\/a> with 19.8 billion streams.<\/span><\/p>\n On the other side of the field, the so-called All-American Halftime Show\u2019s most well-known performer is Kid Rock, who started out in the early 1990s and<\/span> <\/span>hasn\u2019t had<\/span><\/a> a top 10 single in 24 years. The rest of the performers: Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice, and Gabby Barrett.<\/span><\/p>\n Who?<\/span><\/p>\n Fame-obsessed President Donald Trump and his minions have nothing to brag about when it comes to the star power of \u201ccelebrities\u201d on the right.<\/span><\/p>\n Related |\u00a0Former Superman turns into an ICE supervillain<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Among the more notable figures who stand 10 toes down for the GOP:<\/span> <\/span>Dean Cain<\/span><\/a>, best known for a few years as Superman on TV, now shilling for ICE; Gina Carano,<\/span> <\/span>who was fired<\/span><\/a> by Disney for comparing criticism of conservatives to the Holocaust; and Jon Voight, an award-winning actor<\/span> <\/span>who has spent<\/span><\/a> the past couple of decades promoting conspiracy theories and Trump worship.<\/span><\/p>\n Every once in a while, conservatives attract a celebrity who is legitimately, currently famous,<\/span> <\/span>like rapper Nicki Minaj<\/span><\/a>. But even then, Minaj\u2019s<\/span> <\/span>past support<\/span><\/a> of allegedly abusive men puts her praise of Trump in context.<\/span><\/p>\n Overall, conservative celebrity is a usually low-wattage affair\u2014especially in contrast to the actual stars who support the Democratic Party and liberal causes.<\/span><\/p>\n Bruce Springsteen<\/span><\/a> released a new hit single on Jan. 28 in support of anti-ICE protesters in Minneapolis.<\/span> <\/span>Taylor Swift endorsed<\/span><\/a> Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election while Trump whined about how much he hates the global pop star. Swift\u2019s fellow singers Beyonce and Lady Gaga appeared at Harris rallies. Oprah Winfrey<\/span> <\/span>backed Harris<\/span><\/a>, and even more famously backed former President Barack Obama in 2008.<\/span><\/p>\n And Obama had the voice of God himself, legendary actor Morgan Freeman, telling America in<\/span> <\/span>a campaign ad<\/span><\/a> why the incumbent president should be reelected in 2012.<\/span><\/p>\n Perhaps the best example of this dichotomy occurred in 2016,<\/span> <\/span>when GOP presidential candidate Trump said<\/span><\/a> the Republican National Convention would be star-studded, but it was the Democratic National Convention with Hillary Clinton that attracted actual celebrities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Trump had former TV star Antonio Sabato Jr., while Democrats had Meryl Streep, Katy Perry, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in attendance, among others.<\/span><\/p>\n The conservative movement has<\/span> <\/span>spent decades<\/span><\/a> complaining about Hollywood and celebrities, who they decry for being too left wing and \u201cwoke,\u201d especially on social issues. Fox News pundit Tomi Lahren<\/span> <\/span>fumed at<\/span><\/a> Grammy attendees and winners on Monday for speaking out about ongoing ICE abuses, insisting that \u201csocial justice warrior grandstanding bullshit\u201d is \u201cwhy no one watches this trash anymore.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n But actor Don Cheadle got to the heart of the matter in his response to Lahren, writing, \u201cBut if \u2018no one watches\u2019 then how did you\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The creative community<\/span> <\/span>naturally supports<\/span><\/a> the arts while conservatives attack them. Diversity is key to the creation of film, music, television, the visual arts and more\u2014so by nature, creative people support racial and gender diversity. The right does not.<\/span><\/p>\n