MUSTAINE On OBAMA's Job Performance: 'If I Say How I Really Feel, I'm Gonna Get Blackballed'

July 12, 2012

During a May 2012 interview with Artisan News, MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine admitted that he is concerned about expressing his political views in public or in the media for fear of backlash against the band. You can watch parts of the chat in the four-minute report below.

On erroneous media reports in February that he endorsed Republican Rick Santorum for president:

Mustaine: "I was talking about the Republican party months and months ago, and somehow some guy got hold of the story and said that I endorsed Rick Santorum. Well, I didn't; I never said that. I knew Rick and I talked to him on the phone a couple of times, but I didn't endorse him. And [Rick] knew that I didn't endorse him. And [Rick] told me, 'I'm really sorry that all this happened. I've been watching how you handled it through this whole thing,' and he thought that I did a good job handling it. 'Cause I didn't say, 'F that guy.' And I didn't cower and say, 'Oh, I don't like the Republicans. I'm an Obama guy.' It's really weird that the music industry and the film and television industry, you almost gotta be a Democrat. It's like if you're a Republican, you're kind of like a guy that people don't really wanna hear from, because they look at Republicans like people who complain. But I'm an independent, not a Republican — I've never been a Republican. I've always said that. I don't belong to any party — I'm non-partisan. And for me, the sad thing is, instead of voting for the best man, I have to vote for the lesser of two evils."

On the danger that his opinions could get him into trouble in this political climate and hurt him economically:

Mustaine: "What I think about the president or the job he's doing, does it really matter? If I say how I really feel, I'm gonna get blackballed — people are gonna talk bad about me and my career's gonna suffer. And that in itself is a shame because since when in America can't you talk freely about things that you like or don't like? And why should I have my business taken away from me because I don't like somebody? And that's one of the fears I have — if I say how I really feel about stuff that people are not gonna wanna come see us in concert or not gonna wanna buy our records. But it's like, man, I've been talking about how I feel about government since I first had my first record. I don't like government. I think that… Much like our founding fathers in the beginning who knew that you needed government but that the people were in control… The government works for us, and I think people have forgotten that."

On whether his opinions have gotten him into trouble in the past:

Mustaine: "Well, not to the extent of [someone like] Ted Nugent. I can understand his anger. We're not very similar, but we do have a lot of things that we have in common. I try and be a little bit more hospitable with trying to explain stuff. 'Cause I know that I'm imperfect, and if I'm imperfect, that means that my opinions are gonna be imperfect, too. Some of them are gonna be right on the money, but a lot of them aren't."

Find more on
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).