Topline
Former President Donald Trump on Sunday shared AI-generated images on his Truth Social platform, suggesting his campaign is garnering support from Taylor Swift fans, along with a series of other posts attacking Vice President Kamala Harris’ record and implying that she is a communist.
Former President Donald Trump shared AI-generated images to imply he was garnering support from … [+]
Key Facts
In a post on his Truth Social platform, the former president shared screenshots of posts by a pair of right-wing X accounts showing multiple AI-generated photos of women wearing shirts with the slogan “Swifties For Trump” mixed with one real image of a woman wearing a similar shirt.
In the post, which also included an AI-generated poster of Swift in an Uncle Sam outfit urging her fans to vote for Trump, the former president wrote “I accept.”
A few hours later, Trump further pushed the idea of him garnering support from Swift fans by sharing a video clip of a woman talking about “Swifties…waking up” following the terror plot that led to the cancellation of her concerts in Austria.
Over the weekend, the former president also shared posts both on Truth Social and X suggesting Harris was a communist, including the front page of the New York Post deriding the vice president’s economic platform as “Kamunism.”
A day earlier, the former president shared an AI-generated image on X depicting the vice president addressing a crowd in Chicago—the site of the Democratic National Convention—with the hammer and sickle symbol appearing in the backdrop.
Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts: We’re launching text message alerts so you’ll always know the biggest stories shaping the day’s headlines. Text “Alerts” to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here.
Key Background
Swift has not publicly endorsed any candidate yet, but she backed President Joe Biden in 2020. Earlier this month, a photo shared on Swift’s Instagram account briefly triggered speculation that she was about to endorse Harris—with some fans suggesting it depicted a silhouette of the vice president. However, this was debunked, as the woman in the photo was one of the pop star’s backup dancers walking back from the stage. Some of Swift’s fans have already banded together to form a group called “Swifties for Kamala”—garnering more than 40,000 followers on Instagram and 60,000 on X. Last week, the group told the Guardian that more than 5,000 people signed up to join its August 27 kickoff call on Zoom, just 24 hours after they announced it. In 2019, the singer was critical of Trump and his presidency and said “We’re a democracy – at least, we’re supposed to be – where you’re allowed to disagree, dissent, debate. I really think that he thinks this is an autocracy.”
Tangent
In June, before Biden dropped out of the race, Trump reportedly mocked Swift in a private meeting with House Republicans. Trump purportedly said “Why would she endorse this dope?” although Swift had not endorsed Biden’s reelection campaign. The former president had previously described Swift as “unusually beautiful,” but called her a “liberal” who “probably doesn’t like Trump,” an excerpt from Variety editor Ramin Setoodeh’s book about Trump’s reality TV show “The Apprentice.” In February, Trump called on the singer to not endorse Biden and claimed the President “didn’t do anything for Taylor, and never will,” while he signed legislation that made Swift “so much money.” Trump was refering to his signing of the Music Modernization Act—an update to copyright laws that takes streaming into account.
What To Watch For
According to CNN, there is some speculation surrounding either Swift or Beyoncé performing at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week—although there is no confirmation yet of this happening. Swift is scheduled to perform at the Wembley Stadium in London on Monday and Tuesday.
Further Reading
Trump Criticizes Taylor Swift, Pelosi’s Daughter, Milwaukee In GOP Meeting (Forbes)
Trump To Taylor Swift: Endorsing Biden Would Be ‘Disloyal’ Since He ‘Made Her So Much Money’ (Forbes)
