Brunswick Beacon, 02.15.24
MAGA Republicans are freaking out over Taylor Swift. While I’m not Ms. Swift’s target demographic, there’s no denying that she is a force to be reckoned with in terms of talent, business success, and influence.
Taylor Swift’s cultural dominance has spawned some utterly laughable MAGA conspiracy theories. Some suggest that she controlled the NFL season to ensure that the Kansas City Chiefs reached the Super Bowl because (wait for it) her boyfriend tight end Travis Kelce gets a $70,000 bonus and she wants that money… despite being a billionaire. Swift has also earned a reputation as a “government asset” in other MAGA conspiracies, deploying her supernatural witchcraft to mobilize millions of young voters to support Joe Biden.
To be honest, blaming women for everything that ails America is a cottage industry for MAGA Republicans. Keeping women and girls in line consumes much of their legislative energy. Passing dystopian abortion bans and threatening to ban contraception reinforce the MAGA notion that, for women, breeding is Job One.
Stay in your lane, ladies. MAGA Republicans don’t want you in the boardroom, and they want to control what you do in the bedroom. They certainly don’t want you in government, unless you’re willing to enforce their anti-education, book-banning agenda on your local school board.
It’s no wonder that 34-year-old dynamo Taylor Swift scares these folks. She’s their worst-case scenario: a savvy woman who doesn’t need a man to secure her place in the world. She’s beloved by millions, she controls her own destiny, she leverages social media brilliantly, and she would never date a MAGA Republican.
Musicians taking political stands are nothing new. Country music icons (and washed-up icons seeking a return to relevance) openly endorse candidates, mostly MAGA Republicans. None of them comes close to having Taylor Swift’s star power. It’s just so, so unfair.
Michael Maisel
Sunset Beach