Let's talk about I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT

Then, Pete Buttigieg and I have one simple request

If you don’t know by now, TFG (The Former Guy who hopefully remains The Former Guy forever) is a master of distraction. He says and does outrageous things because 1) he can’t help himself, 2) he is entirely obsessed with attention, good and bad, and 3) he can use this attention to divert from serious issues that he’d rather we not pay attention to.

So when he tweets I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT, is it a clever distraction tactic to redirect the news cycle? Or the unfiltered ramblings of a petulant, pathetic narcissist who gives zero fucks about the American people and our real needs, and would rather focus on petty grievances about people who don’t like him, wah?

Yes.

Maybe it’s the algorithm (it’s probably the algorithm), but as I scrolled my social feeds yesterday morning, a good 75% of it were people posting about That Post.

I completely understand why we all write, post, share, and comment on the outrageous stuff. It’s a bonding experience in a way — we find our people through the things we collectively satirize. Making silly memes is an easy way to jump in on a national conversation. We feel protective of yet another woman being attacked by a man who is both powerful and violent. And we certainly get catharsis in mocking the absurd statements of a grown man who still behaves like the worst 12 year-old-boy we ever knew.

Still.

I’m only asking one small favor:

Let’s not make the outrageous stuff the only things we share and talk about.

Pete Buttigieg will back me up on this.

I’m not worried about the meme makers; I’m worried about the not-so-engaged voters who know more about TFG’s dislike for Taylor Swift than who he does like. Including white nationalists and other bigots, sadistically cruel policy makers, actual real-life fascists, hateful conspiracy theorists (who the media gently label “provacateurs”) despicable politicians like Marc Robinson who call for violence against their “enemies,” and to top it off, a hand-picked VP candidate who admitted to creating stories that demonize the community of hard-working, legal Haitian immigrants in Ohio, resulting in actual violence and credible threats of violence.

Bomb threats against schoolchildren, you guys.

And yet the only thing that really knocked I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT out of trending topics and top search terms, at least for now, was an actual assassination attempt that yielded…more calls for more assassination attempts. [gift post link]

What. The. Fuck.

I mean, is this really the kind of country that we all want to live in? Regardless of what party you’ve registered for, or who you have or haven’t supported in the past, do we want to live our lives immersed in this garbage every single freaking day?

I hope not.

So here’s my reasonable proposal:

For every response/meme/joke we make about Trump’s garbage nonsense, his affairs, his gold toilet, let’s post two to three times about the real issues that American voters care about.

Read more from Pew here

Browse the worst of Trump’s Project 2025, his plans to dismantle democratic systems and protections to create an authoritarian government.

Look at the record he has to run on.

Look at his own actions.

Then, break them down and pick the issues that matter to you, to your community, or to the people in your life who might want to know more about them.

Care about sstrong economy and job growth? Trump was the worst economic president in US History, led multiple companies into bankruptcy, and now owes $450 million after being convicted of fraud in his own company. That bastion of liberalism, Goldman Sachs, has declared a Trump victory would hurt the economy, create job loss, and spark a recession.

Care about better immigration policy and safety at the Border? Trump demanded Republicans blow up the bipartisan border bill this January, with a willingness to hurt the country if it would provide an “edge” for him in the election. A reasonable flow of immigration, by the way is one of the essential components of a strong economy.

Reproductive freedom? Of course Trump has an entire 4-year record of hurting women with his policies, complete with three-hand-picked anti-choice SCOTUS judges — and he’s awfully proud of the Dobbs decision that overturned Roe, and has jeopardized the health and wellbeing of millions of Americans.

Creating conditions for peace around the world? Standing up to dictators? Preservation of the global alliances that help keep us all safe and preserve democracy? Lordy, these are reasonable requests hat taren’t even in the realm of possibility with Trump.

Common sense gun safety regulations — including regulating the kind of assault rifle in yesterday’s incident that’s designed to fire 600 rounds per minute?

Continued voter protections and access to free and fair elections?

Racial justice and economic equity?

LGBTQ+ rights? Climate crisis solutions? Access to healthcare? Lowering the cost of prescription drugs? Preservation of same-sex marriage? Housing affordability? SCOTUS term limits? College loan forgiveness? Funding of social security? Funding of public education?

How about simply the freedom to read the books we want to read in public libraries?

Or maybe, policies aside, there are people in your life who don’t believe a rapist who’s been found criminally liable for his raping should be allowed anywhere near the Oval Office. I think that should be a low bar, personally.

You can talk about that too.

Okay, so here’s just one more thing you can do that’s important:

Remind people why you are voting for Kamala Harris, and not just against Donald Trump.

I have a handy Thread for that right here that you can feel free to share, adapt, or borrow from.

Or, find details on all of the Vice President’s policy proposals on her website.

(But as we learned in 2016, people who say “I need more policy details” really don’t want a whole lot of policy details. Still, I give you links. They’re free! And I’m generous like that. Maybe they’ll come in handy.)

We are now 49 days from the Presidential election. We also need urgent support for Senators Jon Tester and Sherrod Brown to keep control of the US Senate and enact policies that will benefit the American people; plus we’re voting on all 435 Congressional seats up for grabs.

It’s a big one.

So let’s have fun, keep the joy vibes going, recommence the hopescrolling. But let’s commit to getting a few of our top issues out into the world along with the hamberder memes.

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