Morrissey just gave his first in-person interview in nearly ten years to Larry King Now, King's web series, and if you are wondering whether his overall worldview has brightened in the last decade, here are 11 strong pieces of evidence that it has not.

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1 | On President Obama being "white inside":
"I think he's disappointed lots of people because I don't think in cases like Ferguson that he's helped his own people. By being more interested, and forgetting about the police machinery all the time and constantly saying the police are always right and we must listen to the police. Everyone knows that's not true. So Obama, is he white inside, that's a logical question, but I think he probably is.​"

2 | On whether America is ready for Hillary Clinton:
"You've known her for a long time. You should know by now. Everybody in this country should know by now.​"

3 | On, in Larry's words, "taking on the tough ones: Ann Coulter, Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin":
"I don't think they're tough, I think they're insane."

4 | On Donald Trump and the rest of the GOP hopefuls:
"In the dark, he'd look the same. It's all the same suit and tie. You never see someone who is absolutely... Who is that? Who is this person? How interesting they look! They all look so uniform."

5 | On his recent run-in with the TSA, which he claims violated his "private bits":
"Would you like the absolute details? They're absolutely horrific. He put his finger down my rear cleavage. Why did he need to? I'd been through the full scanner, and I'd been through the second bit, everything was fine and clear, but he went straight for my private bits and then put his finger down my rear cleavage. [He said] 'It's just your opinion.' He said it four times. The people I was with, from the special services, said, 'This is assault,' and he said, 'That's just your opinion.' They're above the law.​"

6 | On whether people should adopt vegetarianism:
"Nobody's that hungry. They're not really that hungry that you need to take a life of something that also wants to live."

7 | On performing:
"It's the only thing nobody can interfere with. They can't interfere with everything else, but they can't interfere with you when you're onstage."​

8 | On whether he's considered suicide and why it's "admirable":
"No, but many others have. It crosses everyone's mind, even people who mistakenly assume they're happy. They think of disappearing, of taking control and saying: 'No more of this silliness.' And it's admirable."​

9 | On whether he likes rap:
"I don't like rap. The voices are always the same."

10 | On the British music of the day:
"I'm not a fan of modern music at all. I don't hear anything interesting." Larry: "Does Sam Smith..." Morrissey: [delivers full-body grimace, clears throat, bites finger] "I think it's time to swiftly move on."

11 | On whether he enjoys being onstage:
"Yes. You may even say—if you dare—that I am happy."

Don't you believe it. The whole interview with clips, plus a performance of his new single "Kiss Me a Lot," can be found here.

This article originally appeared on US Esquire

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From: Esquire UK