By Jasper Ward
WASHINGTON, Aug 9 (Reuters) – Some Taylor Swift songs have been removed from social media videos posted by President Donald Trump’s campaign and the White House, which has used two of the American superstar’s songs over the past week.
The White House and a representative for Swift did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Swift has not spoken recently about Trump, although she endorsed his Democratic rival, then-Vice President Kamala Harris, in 2024. During the 2020 campaign, Swift posted on social media that Trump was “WELL AWARE we do not want him as our president.”
Trump has repeatedly criticized Swift. After she endorsed Harris, the Republican said on social media, “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” Last year he wrote: “Has anyone noticed that, since I said ‘I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT,’ she’s no longer “HOT?”
Dozens of artists, including Sabrina Carpenter and Ariana Grande, have called on the Trump administration not to use their songs.
The Trump campaign used two Swift songs over the last week on its TikTok page. One, playing on her lyrics, featured the caption: “Red (Donald Trump’s Version). Red (Taylor Swift Wrote A Whole Album About Republicans). Donald Trump. Everything Has Changed (At Our Southern Border). Donald Trump. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (The Biden Harris Administration). Donald Trump. The Last Time (An Autopen Runs The Country).” It referenced famous songs by the pop star.
In June, Trump’s campaign posted a video on the short-video platform with Swift’s new “Toy Story 5” song “I Knew It, I Knew You.” The short video was captioned “Nobody loves our country & the American People more than @President Donald J Trump.” It showed him interacting with children at the White House, dancing at a UFC match and appearing at a rally.
It was the third time the Trump administration or his campaign had used one of the Grammy Award-winning pop star’s songs in recent months.
In April, the White House shared a video showing the crew of Artemis II meeting with Trump at the White House the day before. The video used Swift’s “High Infidelity” and lyrics from the song: “Do you really want to know where I was April 29th?”
The White House shared another TikTok video in November featuring “The Fate of Ophelia” from Swift’s “The Life of a Showgirl” album, which had been released the month before. That video featured images of the U.S. flag, monuments and various photos of Trump, including his 2023 arrest mugshot.
That post garnered widespread social media reaction and led to a White House spokesperson telling multiple news outlets the video was created because the Trump administration knew news outlets “would breathlessly amplify them.”
The communications team for Trump, who is prolific on social media, has posted an array of hit songs with images including Trump’s immigration crackdown, U.S. military operations against Iran and the arrest of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
(Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by William Mallard)
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