John Legend Puts ‘Shark Tank’ Star on Blast

The Voice coach John Legend has been especially outspoken in his political views in 2020, first joining the Joe Biden and Kamala Harris campaign in October 2020. Now, Legend is speaking up once again, this time in opposition of a tweet sent out by a Shark Tank shark.

The exchange between Legend and Shark Tank’s Mark Cuban took place on Twitter after Cuban tweeted that people should donate to food banks rather than donating to support the senate run-off races that will be voted on in January 2021.

On November 12, Mark Cuban tweeted, “For those considering donating to Reps or Dems in the Georgia Senate run-offs, can you please re-consider and donate that money to your local foodbank and organizations that can help those without food or shelter? Let’s put Americans in need above politics.”

He received a near-instant reply from Legend on the subject.

Legend and Cuban Disagreed Over the Best Places to Donate Money

I get that politics is annoying and contentious, but the bottom line is that the Senate flipping would be far more impactful than a food bank donation. We need massive stimulus and aid to individuals and small businesses. Government needs to do this. Charity isn’t sufficient

— John Legend (@johnlegend) November 12, 2020

Legend replied to Mark Cuban’s tweet to clarify why he thought people should donate to those upcoming senate races in Georgia rather than a food bank.

“I get that politics is annoying and contentious, but the bottom line is that Senate flipping would be far more impactful than a food bank donation,” Legend wrote. “We need massive stimulus and aid to individuals and small businesses. Government needs to do this. Charity isn’t sufficient.” ‘

Cuban then replied, implying that Legend was saying no one should donate to charity and instead give all their money to politicians to solve problems. He wrote, “Come on John. There is a point of diminishing returns on political ad spend, there are no diminishing returns when it comes to feeding the hungry.”

Legend agreed with the point about diminishing returns on political ad spending and said that he thought people should keep that in mind with donating, however, he also argued that donating to charity wouldn’t address all the problems he sees because the scale isn’t as large as what the government can do.

The Two Celebrities Argued Over Spending on Twitter

That being said, I’ll be doing both

— John Legend (@johnlegend) November 12, 2020

Even after that lengthy exchange, the public figures weren’t done arguing. Cuban agreed that charity can often be seen as a “band-aid,” but he also said there are a lot of people currently suffering that do need the help that comes from the charities.

“Do you really think more money will increase the chances of winning, or is it an unknown and you figure it can’t hurt?” Cuban asked. “And do you really think either party puts fundamental reform over gaining/retaining power?”

Legend had another quick reply, again putting his political beliefs out for everyone to see.

“I believe the Democrats will do more to help the country recover,” he wrote back. “Period. I don’t think it’s even close. Mitch [McConnel] will be obstructionist and try to find ways to make Biden a one-term president, just as he promised (and failed) to do with Obama. But I don’t know if we’ve reached the point of diminishing returns for donating to the runoffs in Georgia. It’s hard to know.”

He continued, “But I plan to err on the side of donating to help Ossoff and Warnock win. I hope it works. It will be better for the country.”

He continued along the same lines for a few more tweets, but he did not receive another response directly from Cuban. He did, however, say he would be donating to food banks as well as donating to the Georgia democratic senate candidates.

READ NEXT: Country Music Legend Turned Down ‘The Voice’ for Coaching Job