Elon Musk says in bizarre post that he will give Taylor Swift a child after Harris’s support
Top line
Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X and a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump, published a bizarre post taking aim at Taylor Swift shortly after she announced her highly anticipated endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris. He declared that he would “give you a child and protect your cats with my life,” drawing ridicule from X.
Elon Musk published a bizarre post targeting Taylor Swift shortly after she became Vice President … (+)
Key data
Musk’s post, written at 12:46 a.m. EDT, had already been viewed over 39 million times and liked over 200,000 times as of Wednesday morning.
Although it’s unclear what Musk was referring to, his promise to “protect” Swift’s cats may have been a reference to false allegations that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating pets. These allegations went viral and were parroted by Musk, Trump, and his running mate, Senator JD Vance (Republican of Ohio).
Springfield, Ohio, police told Forbes that there were “no credible reports” of pets being injured or eaten. But Trump’s supporters seized on the issue as a rallying cry on social media, portraying the former president as a savior of domestic cats.
Musk’s tweet could also refer to Swift’s post: She posted her statement of support on Tuesday evening with a picture of herself holding her cat and signed “Taylor Swift, childless cat lady” – a reference to Vance, who had previously criticized Democrats as “childless cat ladies.”
Following the debate, Musk made more posts in support of Trump, including one accusing the moderators of being unfair to Trump and another claiming, “We’ll never get to Mars if Kamala wins.”
Main critics
Musk quickly came under fire online. A post on X that was liked more than 132,000 times condemned Musk’s post as “perhaps one of the creepiest posts ever.” Popular left-wing Twitch streamer Hasan Piker received nearly 40,000 likes for a post calling Musk a “disgusting piece of shit,” while Brett Meiselas, founder of left-leaning media company Meidas Touch, received 35,000 likes and wrote that Musk “telling Taylor Swift he’s going to impregnate her is the height of odd and disgusting behavior.”
News Peg
Billionaire pop singer Swift endorsed Harris after voters and media outlets heavily speculated about whether she would interfere in the campaign. Swift called Harris a “calm, gifted leader” in an Instagram post to her 283 million followers shortly after Tuesday’s presidential debate and said she believes “we can accomplish so much more in this country when we are led by calm, not chaos.”
tangent
Swift has stayed out of politics for much of her career, although she endorsed President Joe Biden in 2020 and previously made her first political endorsement for Democrat Phil Bredesen over Republican Marsha Blackburn in Tennessee’s 2018 Senate race. Vote.org has said Swift’s political statements have led to a surge in voter registrations, with nearly 65,000 registrations of voters ages 18 to 29 recorded in the 24 hours following her endorsement in 2018.
Important background
Musk has emerged as Trump’s most vocal supporter ahead of the 2024 presidential election. Musk is the most followed person on X and frequently spouts right-wing rhetoric to his 197 million followers. The Wall Street Journal reported in July that he plans to donate $45 million a month to the pro-Trump America PAC (the billionaire denied the report but acknowledged that he makes “lesser” donations). Musk interviewed Trump in a conversation on X in August, and Trump said last week that if he wins, Musk has agreed to lead a “commission on government efficiency that will be tasked with conducting a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government.”
Forbes Rating
Forbes estimates that Musk was worth $248.7 billion as of Wednesday morning, making him the richest man in the world. Much of his wealth comes from his stakes in Tesla and SpaceX, and he also owns an estimated 74% of X. Swift’s net worth is estimated at $1.3 billion. She became a billionaire in October 2023 and was the first musician to make the list based solely on her songs and performances.
More information
Police deny allegations that Haitian immigrants are eating pets in Ohio – spread by JD Vance and right-wing commentators (Forbes)
Taylor Swift endorses Kamala Harris: Billionaire pop star’s political past explained (Forbes)
