Vice President Kamala Harris truly wiped the floor with Donald Trump during last night’s presidential debate. Even conservative sites and outlets called it that way. There’s part of me which wishes that the post-debate energy was purely about how well Kamala Harris did, how easily she baited Trump, how quickly and furiously he took the bait, and how absolutely senile he looked. But last night, as cable news was popping off with analysis of Kamala’s victory, Taylor Swift suddenly decided to endorse. Keep in mind, just 48 hours beforehand, Taylor was hugging up MAGA supporter Brittany Mahomes at the US Open. That affection towards Brittany (someone who was personally thanked by Donald Trump for her support) had led to some of the most critical coverage of Taylor in years. Then, immediately post-debate, Taylor decided to throw her support behind Kamala Harris. This is what Taylor wrote alongside a photo from her Time POTY editorial, with one of her three cats.
Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight. If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most. As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country.
Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site. It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth.
I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them. I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos. I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.
I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice. Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make. I also want to say, especially to first time voters: Remember that in order to vote, you have to be registered! I also find it’s much easier to vote early. I’ll link where to register and find early voting dates and info in my story.
With love and hope,
Taylor Swift
Childless Cat Lady
Better late than never! No, I won’t complain. We bashed her for 48 hours and she changed tack and endorsed. That’s what more people should do. This is what we want from the most influential people in the world. We want them to use their privilege, platform and influence to advocate for the greater good rather than their own narrow interests or their a–hole friends.
For what it’s worth, the Harris-Walz campaign seemed to know Taylor’s endorsement was coming, and they must have cleared the rights for some of Taylor’s songs. Kamala walked out to “The Man” at last night’s post-debate rally, and Kamala HQ is using “Ready For It.” Walz was pleased as punch too, but he’s a major Swiftie.
Ready for it 🫶 pic.twitter.com/TqDdzlhWto
— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) September 11, 2024
Tim Walz learns about Taylor Swift's endorsement of Harris in real time on MSNBC pic.twitter.com/KVsyH9v87d
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 11, 2024
Photos courtesy of Cover Images, cover courtesy of Time Magazine.
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- Celebrities at the 2024 US Open at Billie Jean National Tennis Center Featuring: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, Brittany Mahomes Where: Queens, New York, United States When: 08 Sep 2024 Credit: David Lobel/INSTARimages
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- Celebrities at the 2024 US Open at Billie Jean National Tennis Center Featuring: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, Brittany Mahomes Where: Queens, New York, United States When: 08 Sep 2024 Credit: David Lobel/INSTARimages
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- Celebrities at the 2024 US Open at Billie Jean National Tennis Center Featuring: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, Brittany Mahomes Where: Queens, New York, United States When: 08 Sep 2024 Credit: David Lobel/INSTARimages
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- Celebrities at the 2024 US Open at Billie Jean National Tennis Center Featuring: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, Brittany Mahomes Where: Queens, New York, United States When: 08 Sep 2024 Credit: David Lobel/INSTARimages
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- Singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs during the Men’s Singles Championship Final at the 2024 U.S. Open Tennis Championships at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, Queens Featuring: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, Brittany Mahomes When: 08 Sep 2024 Credit: David Lobel/INSTARimages
Stay engaged and vote blue!!!!
Exactly!! The only poll that counts is the voting polls! Get out there and vote.
I’m gonna go out on a limb and say this was her plan all along, and people just have decided it’s because she was badgered. IMO, she timed this great: you know that raving lunatic you just watched? yeah, I’m not voting for him and here’s why.
but as I said yesterday, even if she endorsed now, people will claim that she only did it because she got bad press. 🤷
Anonymous – I agree with you. She doesn’t do ANYTHING spur of the moment; everything is always precisely orchestrated and planned within an inch of its life. And like the article mentions, it really seems like the Harris Walz campaign knew this endorsement was coming.
I agree it was very well planned. And as Gov Walz said, so eloquent. I love that she included information about registering. So many of her fanbase are first time voters and may not have the information they need about registering.
Also, I know this will be an unpopular opinion, but I’m not going to judge her for socializing with Mahomes. Part of the Harris/Walz platform is unity. Kamala speaks of unity often. She knows this country is on the brink of civil war, and we need to be careful. People need to reach across the divide and remind Trump supporters that we are the “woke liberals” they’re targeting with their violent threats. Their friends, sisters, brothers, daughters, sons. It’s easy to spew hate to a faceless population. It’s a lot harder when you put a face to the target.
Also agree w/@anonymous. TS timed her endorsement for maximum impact. The text of it it thoughtful and passionate and persuasive. I admire the way she handled it. Cherry on the debate night sundae.
I’m with all of you, her timing was perfect. I was already riding a high because Trump’s performance was so awful, and VP Harris’ was incredible, but I audibly whooped (which was frankly embarrassing) when I saw her statement hit the news.
Nicely done, Taylor, and thank you. This matters.
Even as a non-American, I implore you guys to vote Harris-Walz.
And then thousands yes! for Taylor. She was obviously wanting to time her endorsement to Kamala sweeping the floor with Orangino -as expected- for maximum effect.
Her statement was powerful: Clear, concise and touched all relevant points. Yes she could do better in the acquaintance department, but please, don’t judge her for a choice of company adjacent to the man she’s seemingly in love with.
Vote blue!
Good!
Register, volunteer, donate, vote.
done, done and waiting for my mail in ballot.
Sign up to be a poll watcher also.
@kirk – As someone living in Georgia, I have reservations about signing up to be a poll watcher, especially after what Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman went through. I was thinking about getting involved before the 2020 fiasco, but now it just feels too risky. It’s a real shame, but their experience definitely makes me hesitate.
@Tash – understood. Perhaps it would be better if there were more like minded people doing it together. I live on the left coast where we’ve been voting by mail forever, and trust controls implemented by the State, so I’ve never felt the need. But if I was in a battleground state, I’d want to shut down any stupid accusations parroted by tRumpers. ABA has set up a bipartisan committee on election law with educational material on their website, ability to get CLE credits in their Poll Worker Esq system, etc. Brennan Center said most poll workers are > 60 yrs old, and many were preparing to leave before 2024.
If anybody is thinking about working or watching polls, see US Election Assistance Commission:
1. poll workers – https://www.eac.gov/help-america-vote
2. poll watchers – https://www.eac.gov/election-officials/poll-watchers; or check with your state SOS or local county / municipality for rules.
Ditto!!!
She’ll sue DT after the election. No need to give him the headlines now.
There definitely will be a lawsuit. She knows what he did, she called him out for it, and this is false representation, not a matter of artistic license. Filing likely coming as a nice holiday gift for him. Serve the Complaint in some nice holiday cat wrapping paper
I’m not an IP lawyer, but I’m guessing that given the value of her brand, the damages in any potential lawsuit could wipe out DT financially once and for all.
AI is still the Wild West in terms of legislation, but, unfortunately , the person who created the image is likely liable and no one on Trump’s team is smart enough to have created it.
@Megan- That is deeply incorrect. In the US, you can be sued and made to pay restitution for using someone else’s likeness without their consent. It does not matter who created it. If you used it, you are on the hook. That is actual law.
DT is a public figure, with knowledge perceived to be above an average citizen’s when it comes to consent (limiting this to only use of other’s likeness), who likely also has sued others for similar issues, AND, even if none of the above were true, he still has several recent and real time examples of copyright infringement against artists–some of whom his actions have indicated to acknowledge he did not have consent to use their work OR likeness.
Please don’t use feelings as the arbiter of something for which there is actual decades of legal precedent for. AI may be new, but where it currently falls in the law is not.
Thanks for the info, Ham&Cheese!
@Ham&Cheese I work in an industry that makes heavy use of AI, and has for many years. We consult with IP lawyers regularly to make sure we don’t get sued. Lacking clear legislation and limited precedent, the court are focused more on creators than distributors.
Copyright infringement is an entirely separate issue and law from AI generated images.
Axios is reporting that over 400,000 people registered to vote after Taylor Swift’s post on Instagram
Fantastic, Clove!!!
I hope she does – TS has shown in the past that she is more than willing to go to war even if she may not see a dime.
Isn’t using her image/likeness/ name to endorse his candidacy just straight up fraud? I’m not an expert on AI, but it really seems like if there isn’t a law about this situation, there should be.
I would be better if she were to do it, now, so that Trump would have to use campaign funds, to fight it.
The Harris Walz campaign also already has HW friendship bracelets on sale, with the “Are you ready for it” in the description. So they definitely knew this was coming and likely may have coordinated the timing.
True. We can criticize her for her very public and deliberate (performative?) display of friendship with MAGAt Brittany, but the endorsement was likely always coming last night. Public pressure or not.
It’s a good thing. Point blank period.
She and her PR team likely coordinated with them when would be the best time to post this. Also, they are conscientious with how they source their merch so if they’re immediately selling friendship bracelets, then this was a long time coming.
Yeah, that endorsement was not written at the last minute. Thoughtful and comprehensive.
Given how thoughtful and aware the Harris/Walz campaign and Swift are, I’m suspecting that the Mahomes thing was used to make this endorsement even bigger. Because it was just yesterday everyone was tearing Swift to shreds for buddying up with a maga_ and then last night, boom.
I mean, I don’t think she invited Brittany to the US Open on her private jet so she could publicly hug her so her endorsement would seem that much bigger. I think people are starting to get a little too into the weeds here to defend her friendship with Brittany as some sort of master ploy to really stick it to the MAGAs or whatever.
Like Maddy said, people can judge her for the friendship AND be glad for her endorsement now.
It’s ok to have friends with whom you disagree about politics.
@Megan, let me correct that for you: “It’s okay to have friends with whom you disagree about who benefits from fundamental human rights.”
Except, I don’t think the above is okay.
Now, if Brittany decides to get behind her bestie and publicly ride or die for Harris-Walz, I will happily eat my words!
I have MAGA adjacent and MAGA leaning friends since i now live here in the South. it is not an easy journey the past decade. but the reality is unless i want to cut off every friend I have locally, I need to change the conversation, and focus on the reasons why I love those people outside of their political followings.
we used to be able to do this pre-MAGA. throwing gasoline on it only increases the temperature. I have cut off ppl who are rabid followers, but the ones I am still keeping with are not as in your face, but rather not loving the democratic ticket.
its a very lonely position in red states
Agree with Anonymous, Marie, Maddy, Looty and so many other commenters. This was the plan all along, wait for the debate and post afterwards, which is so much more effective.
I think nobody should be so quick to judge on photo assumptions, nor hold celebrities to such impossible standards. They are still people with flaws who might find themselves in tricky situations. We should all try to be more compassionate and understanding overall. Nobody is so perfect they could throw the first stone and nobody can read anybody’s mind to know what they really think ot feel or what they go through. Let’s give the benefit of the doubt unless there is real proof to hold against, not just beliefs or personal opinions.
People have the right to be friends with whoever they want to. People need to stop trying to díctate other people’s lives. I’m sure she was always going to vote for Kamala. I don’t choose my friends based on politics. Not everyone does.
I love that the bracelets were ready to go. If the campaign didn’t coordinate with TS, they planned for every contingency which I love about them. The Harris/Walz team are just as competent as the nominees!
I saw some comments about how TS hijacked the news cycle and made it all about her, but I don’t care because YOU KNOW I got under the rotten pumpkin’s very thin skin. Did you’ll see that he was asked about it when he crashed the press pen after the debate trying to claim victory? Just one more stab directly to his overinflated delusions. Delightful!
I don’t think she’s hijacked the news cycle. I think this is a big story (probably bigger than it would have been had she endorsed a month or 6 weeks ago), but I think the debate is still front and center. Or if her endorsement is getting more coverage, she refers to the debate in her endorsement so I think it still points back to that. Basically I think her endorsement is kind of the cherry on the top for Harris’s debate victory.
And yes you KNOW its bugging Trump big time.
I love the timing!!! Trump was humiliated by a black woman and then while he is trying to spin this as a win, a huge celebrity (something he values more than anything) kicked him while he was down. I love that for him!!
Yeah this was in the works for some time. There are some people who are taking victory laps thinking that their deranged criticism of Taylor forced her to endorse. Those people are terribly naive. An endorsement this big isn’t rolled out on whim.
It would be nice to see some of the people who have been trying to smear Taylor as a racist MAGA supporter for a decade took a long look at themselves in the mirror and realized that their hatred of a celebrity made them engage in conspiracy theories and lies. Those people won’t but it would be refreshing if they did.
And another person who has been smeared as a secret racist MAGA supporter liked Taylor’s post -Caitlin Clark.
Lol. CC gets smeared because of her silence around the vitriol her fans release against Angel Reese and those fans and ppl in her circle appear to be MAGA adjacent. She can and should say something which is the point people make. As for Taylor, it’s great she endorsed, I did think she likely would and I do think this was planned from some time ago. However, that doesn’t negate her being buddy buddy with a woman who supports Trump. And that’s something her privilege allows and protects her from. I don’t understand sometimes why people seem not to see the difference between Trump and any other Republican. Supporting Trump is not simply a matter of policy difference, it’s a fundamental matter and indicator of character in my humble opinion. I know people can’t throw away everyone in their circle/environment but there are some things ppl should not stand for. Taylor can be friends with Brittany because she’s not actually going to suffer during a Trump presidency and that’s why ppl called her out. She’s free to be friendly with whoever she wants to be and don’t think it means she’s a horrible person but it does say something about her and her ability to be blind to these issues.
Taylor’s statement was incredibly thoughtful and, to your point, detailed and specific. This was clearly not something whipped up because people were mad at her yesterday, and all the people pretending like it was are being willfully ignorant, which is a great tag-line for all of the MAGAs, now that I think of it.
I’m not a Swiftie, but I am totally fascinated by the cognitive dissonance that surrounds her. She didn’t write one sentence of support for Harris and Walz and leave it at that, which other people have done and that’s fine. Taylor was very specific, and I’m grateful to her. This was huge.
@Lilpeppa40
“it’s great she endorsed […] However, that doesn’t negate her being buddy buddy with a woman who supports Trump. And that’s something her privilege allows and protects her from.”
I think you have it all backwards. Yes, it more than negates it. Being a billionaire, she has tons of incentives to vote for Trump. Yet, she’s voting not only against her self-interest, but also encouraging others to vote the same way because of her values. That MORE THAN makes up for hugging a Trump supporter.
Yes, her privilege would have protected her against any negative impact of a second Trump presidency, but she’s still voting and endorsing his opponents, instead of shrugging it off as irrelevant to her. THAT is using your privilege for the common good.
Hugging a Trump supporter? That’s personal and has virtually no relevance for the country. She doesn’t need any “privilege” to “protect” her from Brittany. Nor can Brittany inflict any damage on most of us. So, it is totally ok to stay friendly with individual Republicans while helping take down Trump.
Well said, Delaney. Brittany doesn’t have the kind of clout where her being an idiot MAGA is going to have any effect on the election whatsoever. The people that were going to be excited by Brittany Mahomes being a MAGA who wants to blow Trump were already voting for Trump. She flips zero people.
All she’s done is expose herself as another racist white chick, and her entire existence is something her husband is going to have to defend for the rest of his career and life. Questions about the choices she has made around this election are going to follow her, and thus him (until divorce) FOREVER, they are both just too young to realize it yet.
The only reason why we know her name is Taylor Swift, unless you are a person who already followed professional football. Taylor said “bless” to Brittany, and wholeheartedly endorsed VP Harris and Walz.
The wording of the endorsement was carefully calibrated to the exact same things that the Harris campaign has tested as best talking points.
Good to know.
Americans to Trump:
We are never, ever getting back together.
Exactly – this was planned. She endorsed Biden/Harris on the night of Kamala’s debate in 2020 and endorsed her again on her debate night. No one chided her into
This.
Oh please. Do you know how quickly merch gets pulled together? You can do this in a matter of hours, faster for a presidential campaign. Her hand was forced by the Variety editorial. She had no other choice.
Performative, contrived and yes, helpful.
@Get Real 20 year veteran of working in national politics/campaign communications. This was absolutely planned and coordinated all in advance. Likely for weeks, if not longer. The approval process for comms materials, press releases, talking points, etc. is intense and takes time. This campaign appears to be operating at a higher level than most, but it still takes time. Also, this was very strategic timing and that takes advance planning.
Creating merch (at least on Democratic campaigns) is no fast task. Getting the designs done, approved, and then coordinating with the vendors – and they typically have to be union or at the very least ethical vendors is time consuming and takes a lot of people coordinating with each other.
GetReal, you keep telling yourself that. Taylor Swift has always been very deliberate on when and how she announces things. She would have this planned out well in advance and co-ordinated with the Harris campaign. She rarely does anything off the cuff. She doesn’t care about the criticism because she already had a plan in place.
@KC Also a 20 year vet of state and national campaigns here, as well as a 25 year stint in PR and journalism.
Campaigns move fast when they have to. This was easily done, and very quickly. What talking points did they need? And like I said, merch gets done within hours. I’ve seen it firsthand.
And Joanne, I agree this wasn’t done “off the cuff.” It was a very deliberately calculated repsone to Variety’s op ed. Her team works fast when they have to, too.
I feel the same with the Liz Cheney endirsemment. You didn’t want it lost in the convention but instead came out in between it and the debate.. But analysts and politicos were wondering why she was quiet given her hatred of Trump. I think all these are 100% coordinated and perfectly timed to never take them out of the news cycle. Their foot is on the gas pedal HARD.
@Get real, 10000% agree. The white ladies are happy though (she addressed her bread and butter wallets here: women (predominantly WHITE woman) and LGBTQ+ community (who certainly deserve all of the support)) but nothing has changed about who she is… this endorsement helps, and yet TS has so many instances of problematic views/inaction. She will remain a selfish, vapid, vile capitalist and bigot.
Only she’s not, and she’s done more than any other pop star for the campaign.
Where is Beyoncé’s endorsement?
💯, Treeee. It’s amazing how many corners can get cut when you need to spin something fast.
Between hugging the Magat and her silence, TS’s Tree had to pull a rabbit – or a cat, as it were – out of a hat. She pulled off a fing PR miracle that most folks will swallow whole. As is evidenced here.
Beyonce doesn’t have a MAGA fan base. Beyoncé has very few, if any Trump leaning or supporting fans, that’s the total opposite of Taylor Swift. That’s why Trump’s campaign was creating AI images of Swifty for Trump.
At some point a couple years ago I read that the campaigns and the endorser plan the date for the endorsement to time it most effectively. It could be that her endorsement was going to be later in October again but then was pulled up because of the heat she was taking.
I really like the way she endorsed here too – I did my research, you do yours. Just. Vote.
I kind of like the way this played out, where TS gave her endorsement to Harris right after literally embracing an outspoken Trump supporter. Hugging BM inoculates her against blowback from the right.
I’m not a Taylor Swift fan, but I hope she dumps Travis for wearing that ridiculous outfit he is wearing in these pics.
I will go back to being agnostic on TS. But hugging BM really undercuts the message.
I hope it helps put Trump away for good. Onward.
I don’t know, there’s also a world where that hug now looks a bit patronizing. Like, “bless your stupid little heart, in two days I am going to put out a statement that makes it even clearer you stand with idiots.” Makes that woman (I’ve already forgotten her name and I’m not scrolling back up, Patricia?) look that much more foolish.
I don’t think she met it that way, but now it is pretty damn funny!
@Mia4s It could also be, “I was hugging you because I was drunk.” 🙂
@Boxy lady EXACTUALLY, not ever thing TS does has to be so deep. In her message she encouraged people to do their research and vote for who they think is best. That sort of inoculates her against MAGA, not too much but still. I am glad for the timing and I am glad that she came out with a thoughtful statement.
I was thinking drunk hug too. I know when I am let’s say feeling good, I LOVE everyone, tell them all how much I do too-even when I don’t!
Maybe it means ‘ I’m hugging you bc your husband is friends with mine, who’s giving me the hots right now by behaving like a total an alpha male neanderthal in the field, and it adds to the six beers I already drank, so you’re my sister and I love you and I don’t even remember who you support politically… Or maybe I do and I also want to cause a bit of PR trolling hehehe bc I can… oops!… Big surprise coming in a few days…’
Same. I still side eye that whole scene at the tennis game. But whatever, at least she did the right thing in real time going on the record as I am not voting for an authoritarian nazi. I hope she sues DT for the lies after the election. It can be one of 10,000 lawsuits and criminal indictments he deals with.
Register to vote people, and check and re-check that registration.
If the point of a Taylor Swift endorsement is to actually win the election then hugging BM does not undercut it at all. Winning the election means winning swing states not preaching to the choir in the blue states. The point is to appeal to voters in the middle of the political spectrum. Like it or not the reality is these potential voters are not interested in disowning half the people in their life.
Taylor understands who she is trying to appeal to in these election endorsements. The woman designs successful marketing campaigns as part of her career. That is why when she made her first political endorsement for Tennessee elections that she identified herself as a Christian when she normally never talks directly about religion.
As savvy as TS is, of course this was planned with the campaign. This isn’t just some random endorsement by some celebrity either so the campaign would need to be involved. As for the language – pitch perfect. She’s clear in her stand but isn’t telling anyone who to vote for – she’s underscoring the importance of doing one’s own research and then VOTING. As for the show with Brittany Mahomes, that’s also consistent with the messaging of her endorsement: I did my research, you do yours, we vote accordingly. “I disagree with every word you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Churchill quote, I think?
It’s a misquote of Voltaire.
I too am agnostic towards TayTay. I don’t care about the why or when of her endorsement. I only care that her millions of fans follow her lead.
I’m convinced she reads this blog and was called to action when I called her Temu Stevie Knicks.
Isn’t Taylor hugging her MAGAt friend(s) saying that “regardless of our politics we can stand together in support of common goals” – which is one of Harris’ themes: uniting, not dividing?
Apparently magats are going for TS this morning. That won’t end well for them.
Yeah the Swifties have been waiting for this and have been planning their ‘attack’.
They’re one of the strongest fandoms online that know how to have discussions, but in a different way from people who mostly post about politics.
MAGA will find it hard to deal with them.
Maga is going after Swift? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Hmmm who has the worst fan group to antagonize? The Beyhive 🐝 or the Snake Army 🐍 ? Either way they’ve stepped in it. 😆 (I’d throw the BTS fans and Gaga’s Little Monsters in there too. )
Yeah, sorry, but this “the internet yelled at her, and she changed course” narrative is not true at all. This isn’t something that was planned in the last 48 hours, especially not the song usages by Harris immediately after.
I think Taylor was very smart to tie this to the debate, it presents her as an “open minded” voter (not that I personally think there’s any question!) who listened to the candidates before finally making up her mind. It’s subtle, but it’s a massive FU to Trump. Subtext is he f’ed the debate big time (he did!) Like Kamala, Taylor’s timing is imo meant to get under Trump’s skin. I very much hope that her endorsement derails his campaign’s plans for post-debate attack lines. Because you know he’s going to be pissed and ranting about Taylor instead of cleaning up his debate misses. Excellent work all around!
Yeah, this wasn’t some hasty notes app, this was a highly coordinated campaign that’s likely been in the work for months. It has nothing to do with Brittany Mahomes and likely timed with her VMA performance for maximum exposure.
And for all the “last minute” claims, it’s ahead of voting even starting, earlier than previous endorsements, and far more than many celebrities.
Agree. Taylor bid her time and bit her tongue waiting for the best moment to endorse Kamala/Walz ticket. Her endorsement tells me that it was carefully written and her PR people approved it. Taylor is not just pretty and talented, she is also a smart woman.
And one of the best aspects in terms of timing is that now Trump is being asked about it in his post-debate interviews. It’s such delicious derailment and must be driving his campaign mad lolol! What is Trump saying right now? Not “Kamala avoided answering x, y, z” NOPE. It’s him claiming Taylor will lose fans by endorsing Kamala, him claiming he prefers BM to Taylor (hahahahaha I find this hilarious, so embarrassing, but so Trump) and trashing Taylor. The timing of this is really well done. Use up the media oxygen getting Trump to cry about Taylor and it’s a huge missed opportunity for him to rebound from his poor debate performance. He’s quickly running out of time and the longer he’s ranting about Taylor and Haitian immigrants eating cats, the more people will tune him out. He needs to be hitting his talking points bam bam bam and he’s not- and the media is (for once) helpfully playing along by asking about Taylor and making that the sound bite. None of which helps him at all!
I’m pretty sure that pre-debate endorsement the naysayers were just thrilled to use her as a vehicle for their own virtue signaling and display their own moral superiority. It happens in these threads all the time. “I could NEVER be friends/family with someone trying to take away HUMAN RIGHTS!!!!!!” Okay come live in a red state where you can have excellent, perfect boundaries and no family, friends, coworkers or acquaintances. You can cut them out, or you can try and bring them around–you can’t deprogram them from the cult after you’ve flounced out of the room. So she’s endorsed, and it’s still not enough, now she’s getting dragged for “pulling focus”, “taking too long”, “still nothing about Palestine” these people will never, ever be happy or give their stamp of approval.
Agree 100%. Taylor did not madly scramble to do this in the last 48 hours because people were bashing her (which was dumb as fuck, tbh). This was highly coordinated, strategically planned, and nothing about this was last minute.
There were Walz/Harris friendship bracelets for sale on the Harris website 20 mins after Taylor’s endorsement. This was clearly planned for a while. Taylor waited until the exact right time to get the most engagement. She didn’t change her mind because of the last 48 hours.
This. All this.
Welcome to the Harris-Walz campaign Taylor! Better late than never, we’ll take all the support we can get.
This from Kaiser – “We want them to use their privilege, platform and influence to advocate for the greater good rather than their own narrow interests or their a–hole friends.” YES 💯💯 This is the point I think many of us have been trying to make over the past few weeks about Taylor – its not about needing celebrities to endorse so we know who to vote for or whatever, its about wanting to see someone like Swift use her platform and influence for the greater good. And here she is finally, so like I said, welcome taylor!
I admit though I had to laugh a bit when I saw this because I thought – man that Variety article really got to her, lol. Maybe this was her plan all along, none of us know. but you can’t tell me she wasn’t seeing some of the criticism of the past week re: Mahomes, especially since she referenced the AI images that Variety specifically mentioned as well.
Not sure I’m following your last point. Are you saying you think TS didn’t know or care about the faux-TS AI Trump endorsement stuff until the Variety piece?
Because that’s … quite the leap.
No 🙄🙄🙄 I’m saying it was a specific and very strong point in the Variety article and I’m sure Swift’s team took note.
Swift’s team was 100% aware of the hypercritical Variety article.
In general I think several things can be true at once – Taylor was always going to endorse, maybe last night maybe not, but the criticism over the past few days was certainly noted by her team.
It’s not like this wasn’t predicted, although I know some people are irritated it took her until September 10th. As for her friendship with MAGA Mahomes, look, if she’s with Travis she’s going to be stuck in social situations with her. If she’s anything like I was with Trumpers in 2016, you just don’t talk politics, period.
As an expat, I can assure all of you that in addition to the foreign news reporting on Harris winning the debate, Taylor Swift’s endorsement was front and center.
This Insta post is well done. Taylor used an actual Time photograph with her cat (Trump had fake Time covers of himself hanging in Mar a Lago) to needle Trump and Vance. She was absolutely clear on how she feels about AI and Trump. She’s stated her values and who she’s voting for and why. My MAGA relatives cannot claim her vote any longer, which is seriously important. Taylor did this well, and I hope it extends Harris’s debate performance news cycle.
“At least [she] did one thing right.”
That’s quoting her own lyrics! No, I’m happy. The fact that Trumpers cannot claim her is huge. They can have Mahomes…although if they hug again, it’ll be Brittany who’ll be getting the backlash from MAGAts, and that’s all good.
TS has a big night tonight … no way she went in with half the Internet calling her out. She isn’t even that brazen. She wants that $$$$. It’s one of her predominant love languages.
Two days ago I stated that Tay Tay would come around and endorse Kamala Harris for president. And now she has done just that! She was just waiting for the right moment to do it. Her endorsement is so thorough and complete that she even tells her fans to register in order to vote. I know that many people do not care for Taylor but she deserves a lot of credit for coming out and endorsing Kamala despite of all the hatred she will get for it.
Her statement was very well done and that link to vote registration made it even better.
Picture was also well done.
Couldn’t have been more perfect.
TAY TAY IN PLAY!
But…..we as Americans need to volunteer, donate, talk to people and VOTE VOTE VOTE! WE ARE NEVER GOING BACK!
Sometimes we are all wrong. You were wrong in your proclamations about TS. It’s okay to say it. I was wrong myself. I was angry and disappointed in her, but I was wrong. She mic dropped him, and of course it was all planned with the campaign.
100%. My theory is that Kamala’s campaign was hoping Trump would be goaded into claiming Taylor’s support. It remains unclear if he actually realizes the degree of misinformation *he* consumes on the regular. I’m sure his campaign stressed with him not to claim her support, but I suspect Kamala was hoping to get him to slip (maybe during the Rebublicans who hate Trump bit). It didn’t happen, but dammmmn would it have been amazing if Trump had referenced Taylor and implied her support and she’d immediately dropped her endorsement lol.
Does anyone remember how in 2020 Democrats trolled Trump into thinking he was indefectibly winning until right before states started to flip blue bc of email voting? He even ‘accepted’ his win and asked Biden to concede! Right after he did this, CNN and other Democrat-friendly voices started to report on how most email voters were Democrats and how that would shape the ongoing count!
I think they did just that again: They let DT believe Taylor had submitted to his manipulation and wouldn’t be able to endorse HW for the Swifties. Not only Taylor publicly humiliated him and perfectly executed her endorsement, but he’s now under the threath of being sued by a major contender for image rights and inappropiate AI use. I can only think of how that will turn out for him if this goes through and someone like ScarJo supports Taylor. He’ll be wiped off more than a few millions!
I’m not aware of any state that allows email voting?
Sorry merely me! I meant ‘mail voting’. Oops!
Well, on that note, one of the things I’m laughing about how is all the comments over the past month (because it hasn’t just been in the past two days that we’ve discussed this) defending her lack of endorsement were about how she COULDN’T endorse for safety reasons and we “might” get an endorsement the day before election day or whenever her Eras tour is over.
And now all the fans are saying “OF COURSE this was always the plan and we knew it!!!”
Everyone was wrong here, and that’s fine. this was a surprise and it was a good one.
Yeah the switch from “she’s allowed to have MAGA friends!” to “this was always planned!” is funny, lol. BUT, it worked out ok. So, whatever. Happy she spoke.
@Becks! – I’m not a fan, nor did I think that the safety issues had any impact on her actions. I think there was a massive, massive overreaction to BM’s behavior. The attempts to cast her as some kind of loud and proud Trump fan simply have no basis in her actual actions. She what? Liked and then promptly unliked a post and then may or may not have liked a comment about people supporting Trump? This is not a BM publicly endorsed Trump and then Taylor hugged her. Not at all. And the fact people continue to overplay what BM actually did in public is not a great look, tbh. Do I think she’s a Trump supporter? Meh, probably. Do I think she’s making it public, big ass nope. If the most people have is she liked and then unliked someone else’s post about Trump’s platform, the idea that Taylor would somehow need to excommunicate her for that is so over the top, it’s laughable.
As I said in my own post, the timing of this makes tons of sense to me politically and is brilliant to continue Kamala’s debate approach- goad Trump and get him on rants off topic- and now it continues in the post-debate coverage. Trump’s team will be trying to push him to get on message on his attack lines he failed to use in the debate, but Taylor just set the perfect trap to get him spiraling and off topic again. I don’t think Taylor or Kamala care at all about any SM hysteria about BM, this was planned based on campaign dynamics and timing.
@LadyE I mean, thats your view and its fine. <y view is that it wasn't just a "like/unlike" from Mahomes, it was her defensiveness and lack of rebuttal when Trump name checked her. And Taylor's behavior around her (starting with inviting her to her beach house last month) had a lot of people on here defending Taylor and normalizing MAGA and MAGA adjacent.
But all that said – I didn't mention Mahomes in this comment, I just pointed out that the switch from Swift defenders on here from "SHE CANT ENDORSE" to "THIS WAS ALWAYS THE PLAN" in 12 hours is funny. 🤷♀️
Yeah, I agree that the theories on all sides are pretty obviously based in just speculation- from what’s written here and the silly idea that this somehow was a course correct because of SM criticism to TS defenders speculating about security concerns. I don’t think either of these things have any basis in reality and having worked on Presidential campaigns (many years ago, I’m old!), the idea that Harris’ campaign would agree to endorsement timing based on Taylor wanting to “get ahead” of hugging BM criticism is just…not how campaigns, certainly not presidential campaigns, work. I am curious if this is timed to allow space in the next weeks for a big Beyonce explicit endorsement, hopefully in North Carolina and/or Georgia.
It’s nice to see some people backtrack after the evisceration yesterday. People are just waiting to pile on and hope for her downfall.
This was well planned in advance and she came to play. I’m not a swifty but I’m a fan. She came through with a well planned, banger of a statement.
Can’t wait go see what Harris/Walz do for the US.
A lot of people are freaked out about Trump and emotions are high. Speaking for myself, I said I would be disappointed if she didn’t endorse Harris. Mostly bc trump and maga just do not align with her f-ck the patriarchy sentiment. No one has to speak up but I will always give respect to the ones who do. So yeah, I will backtrack and say I loved her statement, her cat picture and the friendship bracelets. It was well-played.
I join you in saying I was wrong. It takes a big woman to admit when she’s wrong. But I still side eye that friendship. I was sure she would endorse Harris in October. So good for her for doing it while it counts and people can still register to vote.
Same I’m not a Swiftie but I was a fan of hers for a long time, and felt quite angry & sad about who it seemed she was becoming.
Still haven’t listened to her new album lol but I’m glad she did right here.
I bashed her too. This is one humble pie I will eat for the sake of democracy and women’s reproductive freedoms.
Same 😬
It takes a smart humble person to admit they were wrong. We all need to eat humble pie every now and then. Republicans will never admit to their mistakes, that is a classic feature of their party.
Same. But I still believe MAGA is a domestic terrorist organization and what happened here on January 6th is unacceptable. I don’t have anyone in my life who excuses it – I don’t apologize that looking the other way about Jan. 6th, denying what happened, or whitewashing it is a huge dealbreaker for me. Those cult members can’t be reached anyways. Everyone has different standards for what they want in friendships/family bonds obviously as is their right. But I also have the right to say MAGA are not welcome in my life. As a Black woman, I am done tolerating racists, including the ones in my own family.
Now I said she’d endorse in October which would be too late for people to register in swing states – I was wrong, looks like she was planning to endorse all along and that she was planning to do it a critical time. I do love that she provided a link for people to register to vote.
Check your registrations people. There’s a plan in place to purge voters from the rolls so make sure all your ducks are in a row and vote like your life depends on it, because it does.
Plus her being dragged, including by Variety, just makes it sweeter. You know there were MAGAs who were cheering her, an actual A list superstar, being “one of them”. If the speculation had come after the endorsement it could’ve negated some of the impact of the statement. Now any further hanging out will just get a shrug.
I’ not a Taylor hater and have been often on her side with issues where someone was trashing her.
I did not like the hugging at all, though, and was very disappointed with it. Doesn’t automatically mean I was waiting for her downfall for years or whatever.
The reality is that a lot of Americans have people in our lives who are MAGA. We manage it as best we can, while ensuring that what we do is true to our values.
So glad Taylor did this, and in such a nuanced and effective way.
I didn’t bash her for not endorsing yet, but I said her actions at the Open were sending a signal that she intended to be out there: she was protecting BM and not going to be swayed by public opinion. I was wrong about her intentions, in that they didn’t ultimately mean that she was somehow aligning herself with BM’s MAGA feelings. I’m happy to say I was wrong!
Just want to chime in and say that this wasn’t a change of tack. This was clearly planned well in advance and people could’ve stood to have been more patient with Taylor instead of demanding her head on a platter like they have done for the past two days.
Kamala walking off to The Man, Kamala HQ posting an unreleased ‘Taylor’s Version’ of ‘Ready for It’ on their instagram, and Harris Waltz friendship bracelets being sold immediately after the debate shows that this was clearly planned well in advance for maximum impact.
One of Travis’ agent and his wife went to the DNC thing 3 weeks ago – they were also in the box with Britt M on Sunday
Seriously?? It was the unreleased Taylor’s Version of “Ready for it”??? For Swifties, that is HUGE. They have been waiting for the rerecorded Reputation album forever. That could not be huger to get Swifties super on board. Good for her. That is HUGE.
Good for her! I don’t really know why speaking out comes so difficult to her. Artists younger and older than her show their support for basic decency and opposition to any kind of racism and bigotry so easily and passionately that people don’t speculate about whether they are closeted white supremacist or bigot. Kamala performed brilliantly on the debate, this comes as an additional support to her way so I am very happy.
She declared for Biden in Oct the last time so this was early
I don’t think it’s difficult for her at all. I think she cares deeply about timing and plans out stuff. When it flipped to Kamala she was in Europe. She came back basically the day after the DNC. Making her statement after the debate tracks with timing from her previous endorsements and was probably the best time to do it. No one at Harris/Walz would ever say no to an endorsement but they’d much rather have it timed well vs stepping on the DNC news cycle, which was extra important this year in introducing Kamala to the public with the shortened campaign.
Taylor was being careful in picking the right time to endorse Kamala. Her timing has proven to be exquisite. She has excellent PR people who are steering her in the right direction.
Contrary to the popular belief I am seeing, you can speak out more than once. It is especially important to speak out when racist / bigoted people consider you one of their own. You don’t see this kind of conspiracies about other artists, because they release a public statement immediately when their name or work is used by bad people. They don’t say years later, I didn’t have internet on my phone, so I didn’t know, that is, lying like a child.
I love the saying “Now, I’m not calling Mr. DeSantis a racist, I’m simply saying the racists believe he’s a racist”.
It would be nice to see more sports types reconciling that they have friends and family on both sides but they are voting for ____ because ____ and encouraging people to vote and do their own research/use reasoning. I would love for a sports bro who is widely followed to say he has friends and colleagues he loves who are MAGA but he’s voting for Harris because he loves and respects women, for example, but alas, maybe a fantasy only… Will Travis be the one to be America’s boyfriend? Time will tell. Think about if more football players tried to actively combat toxic masculinity, misogyny, and racism, to their followers and fans though… it would be a beautiful thing. The white mens need the hand holding. Guide them, Travis. lol!! Half joking but
LFG! I have respect for all the artists speaking up against Trump and supporting Harris. And that includes Taylor! Her post was long and clear and succinct and linked to voting registration sites. And included a picture of her with her cat😻. The friendship bracelets for sale? So cute. Well-played.
This was clearly co-ordinated with the Harris/Walz teams – she was never going to sit back and say nothing esp after the cat comments by Vance. She has a lot of power and they all know it – her fan base are now more energised than ever and they WILL go after Trump and esp Vance now with gutso.
I loved when she signed off ‘childless cat lady’. I hope Olivia is having fun pooping in all the Magats cheerios this morning.
Yeah, I think she coordinated with the campaign too. If that’s the reason for the delay, it’s fine. Nothing can chill my mellow this morning after about two hours of sleep. 🤩🥳
Taylor Swift does things on her own terms. Relationships, business decisions and showing public support when she decides it is time. I think it’s foolish to think she is so easily manipulated by the public. I’m not a Swiftie. I am impressed by this message posted. I love the timing.
I agree that this was not some spur of the moment decision, either for the campaign or for Taylor. It must have been galling for her to read the Variety piece and the criticism of her on social media, knowing that she was going to post her endorsement.
I was definitely one of those who thought that she might just sit this one out try to do some generic voter registration without endorsing either side. But, to her credit, she didn’t do that!
So, kudos to her for actually stepping up and backing Harris – she shows more conviction than a lot of celebs and she is actually doing something useful with her platform.
The BBC News article about her endorsement was great. They recounted all of Kamala’s celebrity supporters — Taylor! Beyonce! John Legend! Olivia Rodrigo! — as well as Trumps: Hulk Hogan, Space Karen, and Amber Rose.🤣🤣
Fox News asked Trump if he knew about TS’s endorsement right after the news came in, and he acted like it was nothing, that he knew all along (bullshit; you KNOW he believed his own campaign’s AI), predicted that her popularity will suffer for not choosing him, and that, actually, it’s OK, because Brittany Mahomes is better anyway. 🤣🤣
He did NOT say that about Brittany Mahomes, did he??? 🤣🤣🤣
Yep! “I actually like Mrs Mahomes much better if you want to know the truth. She’s a big Trump fan.”
Lmao that dude is such a toddler. 🤣We already know he wants her endorsement badly, he talks about her great beauty and was arguing that she must be faking being a Democrat since a country music star has to be Republican. He wants to say something hurtful but there’s nothing he or Vance can say that will hurt her. When he said previously he liked her 25% less for her words against him she was filmed quoting that and having a great laugh over it.
Glad she did this and before October this time.
Ok I criticised her, but doing this after the debate was a great move. Come on Swifties! If htey now get together with the Beyhive that’s a real source to be reckoned with.
I’m still sipping my tea and minding my black ass business, but she did the right thing. Ariana Grande partnered with the nonprofit HeadCount aiming to increase voter registration. Beyonce hasn’t endorsed but allowed for the licensing of her song Freedom. She had to do something and she did.
I never thought I would say it after the SpongeBob Sidepiece fiasco, but I’ve been very impressed by Ariana Grande. Not only her endorsement, but her consistent reminders to vote and her contact with her fans throughout. Political responsibility and using her voice looks good on her. She’s in a unique position I think, because she has more Gen Z fans and has a lot of reach right now with Wicked.
I’m dying at “Spongebob Sidepiece”!
Ariana apologist here! She’s messy AF but her political engagement isn’t a new thing. On her Sweetener World Tour, she had voter registration booths at her concerts in the states, performed at the gun control concerts for New Town a few years ago, and has consistently advocated against racial injustice, for women’s bodily autonomy, and in favor of LGBTQ+ rights.
Volunteer if you can folks 👇🏾 If we fight, we WIN 👊🏾
https://www.mobilize.us/mobilize/event/652675/
Was it the Variety article that made her do it?
It doesn’t appear reactive based on her immediate post and the product launch afterwards, which is a relief. It might have changed the timeline a bit but it really doesn’t matter. I’m just glad it finally happened and I do think the timing posing her as a thoughtful voter was smart/embracing BM beforehand also meant the worst Trump voters won’t come for her. Now I’m wondering if we’ll hear from Trav because the NFL is a highly conservative institution and especially the KC Chiefs fanbase mostly identifies as conservative or moderate, so it’ll be interesting to see if he says anything. But no, it appears to me Variety didn’t force her hand here.
YUP! And no one can convince me otherwise.
I can be cynical about her but let’s be real, she is so big that she does not need to worry about a Variety article, lol.
I said for weeks timing wise mid to late September worked best. You don’t want to overshadow the convention but once the debate happens, it’s a nice little boost when you want an extended news cycle. She def coordinated with the campaign – Kamala was on stage and there’s a clip of someone saying Taylor endorsed in the background and she walks off to the man. The merch is prob contingency planned but the music – Ds are really deliberate about getting permission and how they use artists’ music so they def knew it was coming.
I also think people kind of miss that this is sort of a power/alpha move among women. In theory, BM is the head woman in their little crowd because she’s married to the QB. But Taylor Swift is a star no matter who she’s with. Maybe the biggest star. And her inviting Patrick and BM to join her and her friends (and all mostly Ds) at the us open, hug her when she’s been experiencing backlash for liking Trump content (she didn’t actually endorse) and then Taylor endorse Harris…sorry but that’s funny as shit. Taylor can actually fully and loudly endorse her chosen candidate. BM won’t. She won’t even stand on business about her likes, lol.
Whew. Thank you, TSwift. I can now resume the plans for my grade school kiddo’s Tay themed birthday party, and try to get her to a concert this October without hesitation or mixed feels.
I’m with you but what do you mean “Maybe the biggest star”? Like, what? Do we live on the same planet? Swift is one of the most influential women in the world right now. She has billions of dollars. She alters the economics of entire countries when she plays shows there. Her crowds cause earthquakes. Maybe the biggest star? lol. I agree with what your saying but she is a household name in every corner of the globe and I guarantee you no one outside of the US knows who BM is.
That was intended to be read as “maybe the biggest star in the world” not the biggest in their group. Sorry for any confusion.
My point is mainly that BM has been the QB’s girl her whole life but her fame is tied to who her partner is, plus she can’t even actually endorse apparently – she won’t even stand behind her own likes. And a new WAG rolls in, and it’s Taylor Swift, and she gets to be magnanimous and be kind to you when you constantly are stepping in it (never forget BM’s frequent PR issues prior to last year), AND Taylor gets to give the most coveted campaign endorsement with her whole chest? Power move, esp when BM is def used to being the queen bee.
I knew she’d endorse Kamala/Walz eventually, but I’m pleased at the timing of it just after the debate. strategic masterclass.
honestly, I’m not about the blowback she was getting for being friendly with Trump voters. We need people who fancy themselves independent and undecided to vote for Kamala. Progressives don’t understand just how damaging their holier than thou and smarter than thou talk, however factual and justified it is to feel that way, is to those people actually voting the way we need them to vote. Taylor is managing to endorse Kamala without making right leaning people who don’t like Trump feel like she’s condescending to them or looks down on them. They have no reason to be defensive. It’s so smart.
I was watching MSNBC last night when Rachel Maddow stopped to read her full statement. When I tell you my jaw hit the floor. MY JAW HIT THE FLOOR!
Then when Tim Walz said he had cats too. I was just over the moon.
Last night was a masterclass watching a Prosecutor wipe the floor with a convicted felon.
With Taylor, it was just a brilliantly crafted message of her saying this is who I am voting for and why. Do your research and make an informed choice. You do you.
I did not love she stayed quiet through the Harrison speech and Trump using AI. But at least she addressed the fake support Trump was trying to push. But when Taylor makes a move it’s checkmate mofos! I was wrong and I am humbled.
And signing off childless cat lady *chef’s kiss* perfect.
Last night I went to bed with hope. This morning, I woke up with the resolve we have to keep fighting and vote blue!
The orange toddler clown must be throwing on helluva tantrum right now.
I’m glad that this is finally settled and now we can get back to hammering on The Donald and his ventriloquist puppet.
I’m not surprised and think this was absolutely planned if Harris was using Taylor’s song and there are bracelets already on sale. Plus there’s the brilliant one-two punch timing of the debate followed by a TS endorsement.
I’m 10 years older than TS and never paid much attention until I saw an interview about why she was re-recording her music,. I thought that was a badass move, and there are some songs I discovered that I really like.
I don’t think she’s perfect, but she does seem like she tries to be a good person — I didn’t see her suddenly going down a MAGA path or staying silent during this election.
Can’t explain the Brittany thing — yeah it’s tricky when your BF plays on a team with her husband. But the optics of all that hugging aren’t great. I deal with my father being MAGA because he’s my father (and even then it hurts like hell as a Latina female to know how he thinks, my dad is White). I don’t have MAGA friends, though.
This certainly was the big news story. My husband, who does not give a hoot about Taylor Swift, told me this morning about Taylor endorsing Kamala. I was pleasantly surprised by this. Honestly as soon as the terrorist plot happened, I thought she wouldn’t say anything for fear of retaliation at one of her shows by violent MAGATs.
I want a HW friendship bracelet.
When I said she is a democrat with Republican friends, people were acting like I was crazy. She didn’t do it last minute. The campaign used her song, the bracelets were ready to go on sale, they timed it exactly how they wanted it. Taylor will also continue to be friends with Brittany too. That’s how it is with her. Take it or leave it.
Its kinda full circle. Bc i think Biden was the first outta these people who made bracelets, with him and Barack.
Trust me, it was not because everyone decided, once again, that she’s secretly super evil. This was planned all along, the campaign was immediately using her songs and selling friendship bracelets. They knew it was coming, fans knew it was coming, this was not in response to the bitching. I wish everyone would calm the f*ck down about certain endorsements- it’s helping NO ONE to be obsessing over how quickly Taylor Swift or Obama endorse Harris.
Fans did not know it was coming, LOL, come on now. Fans have been insisting for the past month that she wouldn’t endorse at all for safety concerns, or she would endorse the day before the election, or something along those lines.
Its great that she endorsed! but to act like Swift fans were in the know and 100% expecting this is just rewriting the past month.
I’m a fan I knew she would do it. She did it in October last time I figured she would do it then. Then I heard she was opening the VMAs and thought maybe then but probably still October.
I kind of agree that she probably planned this the whole time. That is why I think she was enjoying herself so much. Besides it would have to be planned. And think about it. If the debate didn’t go as well as expected, Taylor’s endorsement would be a bump. Either way, I think it was planned.
As to BM – you catch more flies with honey….
Trump responded by saying that “she will probably pay the price for that in the market”, dude got so confused he could form a real thought yet again.
Hah!
The Harris-Walz friendship bracelets are already sold-out.
Donald is delusional – it’s not 2003 anymore, when Republicans and jingoistic party-over country bigot bros could tank the Chicks’ careers for Natalie Maines speaking her mind about how awful, disgraceful W and his lying to support invading Iraq was.
It is 2000-F-in-24 and Taylor Swift’s career is going to be just fine, maybe even better.
Oh, and BTW, The Chicks are going strong: their latest album debuted at #3 on the charts, they’re touring successfully and yeah, that was them singing The National Anthem at the Democratic convention. Shut Up And Sing, Donald.
oh lordy lol. I am not a Swifite or even a fan as people here know – but shes incredibly popular obviously. If she loses 5% of her fanbase over this, or sells 5% less tickets on her next tour…….she’s still going to be just fine.
I think this is the only thing she could do to stem the negative press – it still comes off as cynical and calculated to me. It basically follows the exact same pattern as what happened in 2016 and 2020. She got called out for her politics and political apathy and then and only then does she say something. The bar is so unbelievably low for this woman.
It was calculated and planned in advance. Why is that a bad thing?
I’d argue the bar is set impossibly high for her as a pop star. People hate on her for not endorsing, then they hate on her for endorsing, then they hate on her for the timing of her endorsement which was obviously planned with the campaign in advance. What could she have done that would have been good enough for you?
It being planned in advance is a massive assumption. I said what I think about why she chose to endorse at this point – or at all. I stand by it. I know her stans will want to spin it and that’s fine. I said what I said.
Ameerah M, it’s not a massive assumption. As multiple commenters have noted (including people who have actually spent time working on campaigns) endorsements of this size with this amount of coordination take time. There are song rights and creation/approval/vendor selection for merch (which for a real non-Trump campaign takes time), all of which was available in a cohesive, coordinated way immediately after the announcement.
Now, did she move up the announcement earlier than planned given the backlash? Possibly. But it was absolutely planned in advance. You can dislike Taylor for many reasons you’d like (or no reason at all- no one needs a reason to dislike anyone), but at least be factual.
Except that other people who have worked on campaigns have said this absolutely could have been arranged in a few days even down to the merch.
Do I think she planned to endorse all along and probably moved up the timing? Yes. I think this is certainly better than late October or the weekend before the election like some here speculated. Do I think her statement was very good? Yes. Am I glad she’s endorsed? yes.
But none of that means that this was part of some longterm plan on her part. Maybe it was. Maybe it wasn’t. None of us know. Commentors on here are acting like they were part of the inside baseball for this and the truth is…..none of us really have any idea.
Thrilled to have her public support. The more support from those with big followings, the better.
Vote Blue!
I love to see grown women coordinate and stand on business. Now let’s do our part and gotv. Because that’s the only thing that really matters
Rush to judgment. Remember Richard Jewell from the 1996 Atlanta bimbing? What happened to ” innocent until proven otherwise.” So much mud was thrown at TS for naught.
@Libra, 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
She’s still a coward and a bigot.
The commenter’s saying, “it was so well thought out”[Her post]… I’ve read some incredibly insightful and articulate comments on this site (even when I haven’t agreed with some of them) and I’m a 100000% certain our peers here do not take days, weeks, months to write their ideas up.
I’m glad she gave this well planned endorsement. On her hugging BM- being mean to MAGA people only drives them further into the cult, it convinces them that Trump is right when he tells them we are hateful and that we hate them.
We must fight with kindness so we can defeat this- otherwise there is just another Trump waiting in the wings.
I haven’t read any commentary and I’m guessing some did also note, there was never any doubt on Taylor Swift’s stance and vote. Perfect timing, including the safety of her fans, team and self. I wish I could have purchased a bracelet before they were sold out. I also loved Tim Walz’s reaction with Rachel Maddow, when she read him Taylor’s post. 💙🇺🇸💙🇺🇸
All while she hangs out with Trump supporter Brittany Mahomes.
I think she planned all along to endorse Harris Walz right after the debate, to keep momentum going and to accentuate the fact that they’re the preferable choice. Her timing and signature “Childless Cat Lady” were exquisite, IMHO.
I’ll never get why people are even surprised that celebrities vote blue. It’s like they don’t get that Hollywood is international. Highly international. Actors, musicians travel to other countries. They work with people of other nationalities. They collaborate. Being an actor is about stepping into someone else’s shoes and seeing the world from their perspective. Making music is about connecting with your audience, which requires an understanding of that audience. Both industries demand some level of empathy.
None of that is represented in a conservative agenda. None.
Yes girl!!!!
This had nothing to do with peoples little hissy fit for 24 hours. This was preplanned, including the timing. The Harris campaign knew all about it, and they coordinated the timing with Taylor Swift and if anyone doesn’t believe that they’ve missed the fact that they already have friendship, bracelets that you can buy for the Harris campaign ready to go. They have her songs geared up ready to go. They had Taylor Swift themed, social media post ready to go. They were ready to go the second it dropped and you saw Tim was his live reaction to it. He knew it was coming the man’s not a good actor not only that Taylor Swift now gets this endorsement because she’s opening the VMAs they planned they thought about it and it had nothing to do with people being mad she hugged someone , as she said many times, she doesn’t listen to your Twitter comments .
Now question when’s Beyoncé endorsing because up until yesterday had already cleared her songs, the same way Beyoncé had and they had been using them at rallies and so it was only Taylor that seem to be a problem that she had publicly made a statement because she done as much as Beyoncé up until yesterday, so as of now Taylor’s cleared songs which she had done because they were playing them prior to even the DNC but at the DNC and now she’s only going to yours because Beyoncé hangs out with MAGA is friends with MAGA too? Or is that only not OK for one person?
I wondered this too. No one here is going to come for Beyonce, the same way no one here said anything about Angelina Jolie wearing Dolce and Gabbanna. We’re selective here about our outrage.
It drives me crazy not that I think anyone should come for Beyoncé. Beyoncé is not required to speak on this, but why is Taylor held to this impossible standard and called all these vile names when she’s doing as much as other people but it’s not enough.
Just be consistent in your outrage and again I don’t think anyone has the right to come after Beyoncé or Ariana or Taylor or the chicks like if they don’t want to speak on it they’re not required to, but if you’re going to come, you better be yelling because they’re doing the same thing.
I think the difference is that Taylor made a big point in 2016 (was that 2016?) about not being afraid to speak out anymore and she’s going to do the right thing and be political and she wishes she had spoken out earlier etc.
Its funny you mention the Chicks because I’m sure Taylor and her team were terrified of having what happened to them happen to her.
The campaign had friendship bracelet merch up immediately, so it was definitely planned and coordinated.
(Her endorsement in 2020 was later, but also right after a debate – it was just after the VP debate. The campaigns probably like that timing.)
I hate living in a world where celebrity endorsements mean so much
I actually believe Taylor and the Harris/Walz campaign worked together on the timing for maximum impact. Friendship bracelets were available for sale immediately upon the announcement. Waiting until after the debate makes Taylor appear thoughtful and measured in her endorsement. I expect she’ll register untold numbers of young, first time voters.
And I don’t think that photographed hug was accidental either.
Part of Madame Vice-President’s message is that it’s time to put down our weapons of division and remember there’s more that unites us than divides us.
Yes, that can of CheezWhiz is of the literal devil and I would pay good money to watch him be tried for treason and drawn and quartered in the town square as a warning to any wannabes, but the vast majority of his followers are our family members and coworkers. I think Harris is saying it’s time to stop avoiding and cutting these people off and time we engage and speak truth when and where we can. That’s at least a message I’m getting from Harris’ campaign.
We have to step out of our bubble, especially us white ladies, and start talking to our friends about what’s really at stake for them if Harris and the Democrats don’t win. We’ve lived like this as a nation for nearly a decade! We have the power to end it.
I’m not a Tay fan, couldn’t recognize a tune of hers if I tried, but for the past month or so have been firmly in the camp that she was simply being diplomatic in that Travis and Patrick are teammates and close friends, and she wasn’t going to rock the boat professionally or personally by castigating Patrick’s wife publicly, with whom she seems to have a good friendship. I got some pretty snippy responses so I thought…well, I’m just an old who doesn’t understand these things. But her diplomacy and discretion won the day and maybe, just MAYBE, this will sink into Brittany’s tiny lizard brain that she’s backing the wrong horse here. Tay gave her enough rope to hang herself without turning her MAGA preferences into an all-out war. Tay’s teaching by doing, not with a sledge hammer and unkind words.
Check your registration for your county and re-register if you have to!
Glad she mentioned and has links for this and this will definitely engage many lax or lackadaisical people into registering and voting!
Wow, the haters are now taking credit for pushing her to endorse!?!? LOL Not a chance. This has been in the works for weeks – the whole thing was ready to roll out after the debate. Taylor Swift doesn’t jump because you guys were bitching. She always has a plan.
I wonder if trash MAGA Barbie malhomes knew about this and was trying to get some last likes and hugs in or if she was completely blindsided. I bet she was completely blindsided and is probably seething now
I love Lainey gossip’s take that Britney is a 3rd tier friend and will never be anything more. The day Tay is no longer with Trav she is out of that tier as well
I don’t know many Swift songs but as soon as I hear the beginning of Ready For It I will ALWAYS visualize Simone Biles’ opening pass on her floor exercise this year. Harris’ use of music is savvy, it’s creating an energy and charisma that 2024 sorely needs.
I’m a little surprised Trump shook her hand and told her she did a good job at the 9/11 activities today. I mean he refused to look at her during the debate. Let the Kamala vibes flow and bewitch him. Maybe it’s been a while since he’s been touched by an attractive woman.
I don’t think this endorsement had anything to do with the “backlash.” While I can’t pretend to be in Taylor’s mind, the way some seem to do, based on the immediate response from Harris’ team selling friendship bracelets this would have been in the works for at least a bit. But whatever the timeline at least we can put all this “OMG, TayTay is now Miss MAGA!” drama to bed.
Some thoughts:
1. Taylor is telling ppl who she is voting for and why, she’s not telling ppl to vote dem. She clearly said do your research and vote for what candidate’s platform you support.
2. She’s telling ppl how to register to vote, which is important, and a great way to use her influence.
3. I believe it was timed well in advance. Girl was pretty busy this weekend with lots of events, outfits and quality time with Travvy. Plus she’s a mastermind.
4. Ppl need to touch grass re Brittany. Do u really think she’s going to create turmoil for her boyfriends’ job, team and Yoko Ono Tav and Mahomes bromance. Plus pretty good chance owner of chiefs is a Republican. Is she supposed to burn these relationships to satisfy the mob? she’s already told us what she thinks about ppl telling her how to live her life. She’s over that BS.
5. Can u imagine how many showers she had to have to get the ick of Elon Musks comments off her.
That’s all.
Agreed, Taylor isn’t going to Yoko Ono the long standing Mahomes Kelce bromance. Travis and Pat were there at the US Open to root for the American Taylor Fritz firstly but he was getting creamed.
If you look, Travis, Pat and Taylor were also intently watching 4 football games on Travis’ phone. Brittany wasn’t into it so she was looking like a 3rd wheel except for the posed photos. There were too many important football games going on so Travis explained he had the quad view going. I swear these jocks are like my brothers on gameday. Brittany is just Mrs Mahomes *shrug. And yeah the Hunt family (owners of the Chiefs) are conservatives.
Elon is always creeping on somebody, it’s gross!
I’m pretty sure her decision wasn’t sudden, though I don’t know exactly why she decided to time it, the way she did. Maybe she was really waiting to see that Harris could “prove her mettle“ against Trump.
The punditocracy consensus seems to be that it was perfect timing, but I think, (perhaps because I’ve been on this site too long), that it was a bit of Harris-thunder stealing. Regardless, it’s probably a very big deal, although we can’t know just how much it will ultimately move the numbers. Musk seems to have directed Twitter to throttle her name, because it didn’t trend after her endorsement, so ,there clearly is recognition that her endorsement is a big blow to Trump’s campaign.
FWIW, I think that, given the timing (ie, so close on the heels of her embrace of Brittany Mahomes), her endorsement can be seen as a slap to the face of BM, as well as a declaration to the world that she will not let politics or public opinion dictate whom she will socialize with. She will do things her way, in her own time.
It will be interesting what Trav says or doesn’t say. I am sure he is on board but as a football guy with a bland / brand career ahead of him it will be interesting how he manages it
Please let’s not use the Yoko term to break anything up because she absolutely did not break up the Beatles. If you watch Peter Jackson’s Get Back it is obvious that they had issues with each other and Yoko had nothing to do with it. That was just the racist sexist media looking for a scapegoat
Appreciate the info about Yoko Ono. Sistas have to support sistas from hating on women.
I’ve been a bit critical also, but I was almost moved to tears when she endorsed Kamala and Tim. We were watching MSNBC when Rachel announced on air live during Tim’s interview. I was so upset with the whole Brittany thing. But as we all know TS sets her own narratives and is always in control. She is a very smart and strategic woman. And I love her for that.
According to the news here, over 300,000 people registered to vote from her link! It might even be more now. I’m very happy with her endorsement!