White House officials offered to call rap star Nicki Minaj and connect her with one of the administration’s doctors to answer her questions about the COVID-19 vaccine after she claimed without evidence that inoculation can cause impotence.
Minaj tweeted Wednesday, before she later alleged on Instagram that she was in “Twitter Jail” and was blocked from tweeting, that the White House “has invited me,” adding that she planned to attend, saying, “I’ll be dressed in all pink like Legally Blonde so they know I mean business.” However, a White House official confirmed the offer was only a phone call and not a formal invite, according to the Associated Press.
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Minaj, who has over 22 million followers on Twitter alone, claimed on Monday that her “cousin in Trinidad” wouldn’t take the vaccine because “his friend got it & became impotent,” a comment that was quickly rebuked by medical experts online. Her comments went so viral that they inspired blowback from United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson and rebuke from the Trinidad and Tobago health minister, who said there is no such reported side effect in the Caribbean islands.
The nation’s leading epidemiologist, Anthony Fauci, dismissed Minaj’s claims as disinformation on Tuesday.
“There’s no evidence that it happens, nor is there any mechanistic reason to imagine that it would happen,” he said.
The White House has reached out to other celebrities and prominent figures in recent months, such as pop star Olivia Rodrigo, as part of an aggressive effort to dispel misinformation about the vaccine and make the public aware of its efficacy and safety.
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More than 179 million people in the United States, or 54.1% of the total population, are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Washington Examiner contacted the White House and Twitter but did not immediately receive a response.
