Rage Against The Machine guitarist blasts Paul Ryan for being a fan

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For years Rage Against The Machine has been one of the most politically outspoken rock bands around. Their subject matter has ranged from their displeasure with the treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, the war in Iraq and the immigration laws in Arizona. So naturally when the soon-to-be GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan cited Rage as one of his favorite groups, the band’s lead guitarist Tom Morello chimed in on what he exactly thought about Ryan:

Paul Ryan’s love of Rage Against the Machine is amusing, because he is the embodiment of the machine that our music has been raging against for two decades. Charles Manson loved the Beatles but didn’t understand them. Governor Chris Christie loves Bruce Springsteen but doesn’t understand him. And Paul Ryan is clueless about his favorite band, Rage Against the Machine.

Ryan claims that he likes Rage’s sound, but not the lyrics. Well, I don’t care for Paul Ryan’s sound or his lyrics. He can like whatever bands he wants, but his guiding vision of shifting revenue more radically to the one percent is antithetical to the message of Rage.

I wonder what Ryan’s favorite Rage song is? Is it the one where we condemn the genocide of Native Americans? The one lambasting American imperialism? Our cover of “Fuck the Police”? Or is it the one where we call on the people to seize the means of production? So many excellent choices to jam out to at Young Republican meetings!

You can read the rest of Morello’s letter at Rolling Stone.

You can check out Kyle’s musical coverage on theGrio music page, and follow Kyle on Twitter at@HarveyWins.