Music

Snoop Dogg calls Arnold Schwarzenegger a 'racist piece of s**t'

by Richard Howard

Snoop Dogg is a gentleman that enjoys a good social media beef (see 2014’s dust-up with Iggy Azalea). Though it got ugly at times (and actually brought up some complex questions), at its core it was still two musicians in a trivial spat, with Snoop’s main goal being to deliver the most scathing insult. His recent series of Instagram posts directed at Arnold Schwarzenegger, however, is definitely more personal.

If you’re wondering what the visibly upset rapper is talking about, he’s referring to the murder of Luis Santos and its legal outcome. In 2008, Esteban Nuñez and Ryan Jett fatally stabbed Santos at San Diego State University after they were refused entry into a party. In 2010, they plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter and assault, avoiding a possible death penalty and instead being sentenced to 16 years in prison.

However, on his last day as govenor, Schwarzenegger reduced Nuñez’ sentence to a mere seven years. Due to good behaviour, he was recently released after serving less than six. Were there mitigating factors? Perhaps evidence Nuñez was far less culpable? Nope. Esteban’s father happens to be Fabian Nuñez: former speaker of the state Assembly and a close political ally of The Governator.

Fucked up, right? Arnie don’t care. He initially argued that since Nuñez didn’t have a prior record and Jett did, Nuñez should have received a lighter sentence. I’m no lawyer, but I’m pretty sure that’s not how it works when you kill another human being. He also attempted to latch on Nuñez’ lawyers’ claims that Jett delivered the fatal blow – but since this was never proven, this would also hold no water.

So eventually he just said ‘screw it’ and stated that the sentence was reduced because he found it to be excessive – and because he was helping a friend. The elder Nuñez also defiantly told The LA Times that he used his “relationship with the governor to help my own son” and that he would “do it again.” Appeals by Santos’ family were all struck down because, while obscene, Schwarzenegger’s action were completely within the law. Disgusted courts were forced to uphold the reduction, with a Sacramento judge calling it “repugnant” in 2012 and an appeals court stating that “back-room dealings were apparent” but that it had no choice but to side with Schwarzenegger.

This is the kind of mind-blowing nepotism that would make anyone’s blood boil, so it’s not too surprising it got under the famously opinionated rapper’s skin. Still, the fact that Snoop shared no less than six Instagram posts on the topic suggests the extent of his displeasure. He also points out the fact that Schwarzenegger refused to reduce the sentence of Crips co-founder Stanley “Tookie” Williams, who was eventually executed. That one’s a bit more complex – Williams was convicted of multiple murders, but while in prison became a four-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee for his anti-gang initiatives.

Snoop doesn’t stop there, though. In addition to the above profanity-laced video, he posted others in which he called Schwarzenegger a “funky dog head bitch,” compared him to Donald Trump, and made the perhaps ill-advised statement: “I hope he running with Trump so we can knock both of you n****s off at the same time.”

And while, in classic Snoop style, he focuses on delivery more than details (for example, referring to “white privilege” when Nuñez is clearly Hispanic), helping bring the fact that this sort of skullduggery is not only possible but actually makes this his most useful social media tantrum yet.