Trump Shares AI Images Claiming Swift Fan Support

On Sunday, former President Donald Trump stirred controversy by sharing AI-generated images on his Truth Social platform, suggesting that his campaign is receiving support from Taylor Swift fans. His posts featured screenshots from right-wing X accounts displaying multiple AI-generated photos of women wearing shirts with the slogan “Swifties For Trump,” alongside one authentic image of a woman in a similar shirt. One post also included an AI-generated poster of Swift dressed as Uncle Sam, urging her fans to vote for Trump, with the former president commenting, “I accept.” A few hours later, Trump further promoted the idea of support from Swift fans by sharing a video clip of a woman discussing “Swifties… waking up” following the cancellation of Swift’s concerts in Austria due to a terror plot.

In addition to his posts about Swift, Trump targeted Vice President Kamala Harris over the weekend. On both Truth Social and X, he implied that Harris is a communist, including sharing a New York Post front page that derided Harris’ economic platform as “Kamunism.” Just a day earlier, Trump had posted an AI-generated image on X depicting Harris addressing a crowd in Chicago, the site of the Democratic National Convention, with the hammer and sickle symbol in the background.

Taylor Swift has not yet publicly endorsed any presidential candidate for the upcoming election, though she supported President Joe Biden in 2020. Earlier this month, a photo shared on Swift’s Instagram account led to speculation that she might be about to endorse Harris, as some fans thought it depicted a silhouette of the vice president. This was later debunked, as the woman in the photo was identified as one of Swift’s backup dancers leaving the stage. Despite this, a group called “Swifties for Kamala” has already gathered over 40,000 followers on Instagram and 60,000 on X. Last week, the group reported that more than 5,000 people signed up for its August 27 Zoom kickoff call within 24 hours of its announcement. In 2019, Swift criticized Trump and his administration, expressing concern that the country might be shifting toward an autocracy.

In June, before President Biden withdrew from the race, Trump reportedly mocked Swift during a private meeting with House Republicans, questioning, “Why would she endorse this dope?” despite Swift not yet endorsing Biden’s reelection campaign. Previously, Trump had described Swift as “unusually beautiful” but labeled her a “liberal” who “probably doesn’t like Trump,” according to an excerpt from Variety editor Ramin Setoodeh’s book on Trump’s reality TV show “The Apprentice.” In February, Trump urged Swift not to endorse Biden, claiming that Biden “didn’t do anything for Taylor, and never will,” while Trump signed the Music Modernization Act, which benefits artists like Swift by updating copyright laws to account for streaming.

There is ongoing speculation about whether Taylor Swift or Beyoncé will perform at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week, though there has been no official confirmation. Swift is scheduled to perform at Wembley Stadium in London on Monday and Tuesday, which could affect her availability.