After former President Donald Trump shared his disdain for pop star Taylor Swift in a post on Truth Social, Vice President Kamala Harris's campaign released a statement calling him the "smallest man who ever lived" in addition to many other Swift lyric references.
Trump's fury and the Harris campaign's response came days after Swift endorsed Harris—a major development because Swift has used her massive profile to encourage young voters to participate in the electoral process, efforts that have been recognized by political scientists as having a significant impact on key races.
Swift, who said in an Instagram post that she was only recently "made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site," chose to counter misinformation by expressing her support for the Harris-Walz ticket.
She wrote, in part:
"I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for [Harris] 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 [Walz], who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades."
Notably, Swift closed out the post by referring to herself as a "Childless Cat Lady," a nod to recently resurfaced misogynistic remarks from Trump's running mate J.D. Vance.
Yesterday Trump had just four words to share about his feelings on the matter:
"I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!"
You can see his post below.
@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social
The Harris campaign quickly fired back by releasing a statement titled "Trump's Bad Week (Taylor's Version)," a reference to Swift's process of rerecording her first six albums so she can own her master recordings.
The statement, full to the brim with Swift lyric references, begins:
"We're pretty sure its Safe (& Sound) to say Donald Trump's week has him Down Bad. Mr. Not-at-all Fine has spent this week working through his feelings, whining about his Champagne Problems and spending exactly none of his time addressing the issues facing the American people."
"His yelling, rambling, and constant conspiracy theories have many asking if The Man is "too emotional" to be president. Call It What You Want but It's Nothing New for the Smallest Man Who Ever Lived."
"After a "seething, unhinged, incoherent" debate performance that Republicans deemed a "disaster," Trump and his inner circle of extremists can't seem to Shake It Off as the Bad Blood between Trump, his running mate, and his own party boils."
"Don't take our word for it, though — listen to Trump himself, who spent his time on and off the debate stage with no plans and no solutions for the American people, acting like nothing is Better Than Revenge."
In a section titled "Trump's Sad, Beautiful, Tragic Week," the Harris campaign noted that Trump attended a 9/11 memorial service with conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, was praised by Neo-Nazis following the debate, that Vance suggested privatizing the Department of Veterans Affairs, and that Trump refused to say whether he would support a nationwide abortion ban (a fact that Harris herself criticized him for while outlining the damage his policies have done to American women).
Even worse: Vance himself said he was "wrong" to say Trump wouldn't veto a nationwide abortion ban, the campaign noted. Moreover, Trump, according to new reporting, hosted a "white supremacist and Nazi sympathizer" at his country club on two separate occasions. His views are so out there that his current advisor was "deemed even too extreme for Marjorie Taylor Greene," one of the most prominent extremists in Congress.
Oh, and for anyone who thinks Trump would be great for the economy, the campaign added, conservative economists "confirmed that Trump's economic plan would 'increase the risk of a recession' and increase inflation."
Keeping with the Swift theme, the next section, this one titled, "And Oh My God You Should Have Seen The American People's Faces," notes that Trump "paid the price for his plan to take women's freedoms back, way past 1989" given that "abortion" was the top search term in 49 states after the debate.
The campaign also noted that prominent Republicans believe that during the debate Trump appeared "angry and fixated on the past" compared to Harris, who was perceived as "calm, confident, and strong" on the debate stage. Additionally, "Battleground voters were Enchanted by the Vice President's Fearless debate performance."
The campaign concluded with the following statement from spokesperson Serafina Chitika:
"Donald Trump's week of whining and spouting conspiracy theories has voters on both sides of the aisle ready to Forget That He Existed. The American people want to be Out of the Woods of the chaos and division of the Trump era, leave behind the Blank Space of Trump's broken promises, and Begin Again by electing Vice President Harris to ensure America's future of opportunity is Long Lived."
"Voters know All Too Well how dangerous Trump and his Project 2025 agenda will be if he wins. This November, we can make sure this is The Last Time we have to deal with his End Game of jacking up taxes on the middle class and ripping away Americans' freedoms."
"Together, we can turn the page on the Trump Era and write a new chapter where all Americans Breathe easy knowing we have strong, steady leadership at the helm. We can make sure The Story of Us is one of progress—and show Donald Trump we are not going Back to December of 2020. Like ever.”
You can see the full statement below.
Harris For President
Harris For President
It was clever and hilarious—and people ate it up.
Last week, Harris's campaign mocked Trump for his debate performance using Swift's song "I Did Something Bad" in a viral TikTok video.
"I Did Something Bad," featured on Swift's 2017 album Reputation, features the following pointed lyrics:
I never trust a narcissist/But they love me/So I play 'em like a violin/And I make it look oh so easy" ...
"They say I did something bad/Then why's it feel so good?/They say I did something bad/But why's it feel so good?/Most fun I ever had/And I'd do it over and over and over again if I could/It just felt so good, good"
The campaign posted the video, which shows footage of Harris and Trump at the debate interspersed with a viral post Trump wrote in which he questioned if Harris is "talking about me," and a widely read post-debate article from The Atlantic titled "How Harris Roped a Dope."
The first verse of Swift's "I Did Something Bad," particularly the reference to playing a "narcissist" "like a violin," was the perfect soundtrack for the video, referencing the way Harris, throughout the debate, laid traps to bait Trump, which he fell into each and every time, most notably when Trump got defensive when Harris questioned the entertainment value of his rallies.
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