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Elon Musk has come under fire for his “creepy” comments about Taylor Swift after she endorsed Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 US presidential election.
On Sept. 11, the 53-year-old billionaire took to X (formerly Twitter) to post a message about Swift, hours after Swift revealed on Instagram who she'll be voting for in the upcoming election. The Grammy winner shared a photo of herself posing with her cat, Benjamin Button, in an apparent dig at Donald Trump's running mate, JD Vance, while Swift signed her message: “Childless Cat Lady.”
Musk, who remains a public supporter of Trump and Vance, responded to Swift's endorsement: “Fine Taylor… you win… I will bear you a child and take care of your cats with my life.”
The father of 12's viral post has sparked immense outrage online, with several people calling the comment bizarre. “This tweet just takes things to a whole new level of weird. It's not even eccentric at this point, it's just absolutely disturbing,” one person wrote in response.
“Elon responded to tonight by telling Taylor Swift he’s going to get her pregnant, which is extremely weird and creepy behavior,” another user said.
“Cringe just called and asked you to stop, Leon,” a third responded, referencing how Trump mistakenly called the Tesla founder “Leon” during a recent rally.
Others responded to Musk's apparent joke about Swift, as they described how inappropriate his comment was towards a woman. “No offense Elon Musk, but no self-respecting woman would agree with this, and I'm sure Taylor Swift is a woman who can decide to have a child in the future, with a man who truly loves her for who she is… And, yes… I'm a Taylor Swift fan,” one person said.
“Dude, if you want to learn how to talk to women, I’m available. But I’ll write the contract, not your lawyers. Apparently they have no idea how serious this is,” added another.
“Is this what you post when you have 197 million followers? Harris won the debate tonight and now you want to give a baby to Taylor Swift who has no interest in you. Is this some kind of alpha male dominance to make you feel powerful and manly? Is it working?” wrote a third user.
Immediately following the presidential debate between Trump and Harris on Tuesday, Swift took to Instagram to officially endorse the Democratic candidates.
“I will be voting for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 presidential election. I will be voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for rights and causes that I believe need a warrior to champion. I think she is a talented and steady leader, and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are guided by calm and not chaos,” the “Fortnight” singer wrote in the caption. “I was so encouraged and impressed by her choice of running mate @timwalz who has been championing LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”
She also referenced recent AI-generated images of herself “falsely endorsing” Trump for president, which the former president had reposted on his social media platform, Truth Social. The post included an image of Swift, dressed as Uncle Sam, encouraging voters to support Trump. Other images showed young women wearing T-shirts that read “Swifties for Trump.”
“It really brought up my fears around AI and the dangers of spreading misinformation,” Swift continued. “It led me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The easiest way to combat misinformation is with the truth.”
Swift has already been vocal about her political stances and the importance of voting. In September 2023, she called on her American fans to take action on National Voter Registration Day. “Have you registered to vote yet? I’ve been so lucky to see so many of you at my shows in the US recently,” she wrote on Instagram, referring to her US Eras Tour portion of the concerts. “I’ve heard you raise your voices and I know how powerful it is. Make sure you’re ready to use it in our elections this year.”
Days later, voter registration website Vote.org revealed that Swift had managed to attract a record number of voters to its site. Nick Morrow, Vote.org’s communications director, specified that after the “Anti-Hero” singer’s post, his company’s website “was averaging 13,000 users every 30 minutes.”
Swift first broke her political silence in 2018, after previously facing criticism for failing to engage during major political moments in the United States, such as the Black Lives Matter movement and the 2016 presidential election.
“As a country musician, I was always told it was best to stay away [politics]“Swift explained. “The Trump presidency forced me to get involved and educate myself. I found myself talking about government, the presidency, and politics with my boyfriend. [then actor Joe Alwyn]who supported me in speaking out. I started talking to my family and friends about politics and learning everything I could about my position.”
