MSNBC panel decodes impact of Taylor Swift’s ‘perfectly timed’ endorsement of Harris: ‘It’s a big deal’
WASHINGTON, DC: An MSNBC panel analyzed the impact of Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris, highlighting its significant influence.
Host Joy Reid emphasized the scale of Swift’s reach, stating, “Taylor Swift has 283 million followers and 1 million people have already liked that Instagram post.”
Swift endorsed Harris for president shortly after the debate ended on Tuesday night, September 10.
“I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos,” Swift wrote in an Instagram post.
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Joy Reid highlights impact of Taylor Swift's endorsement of Kamala Harris
Joy Reid noted that Taylor Swift’s endorsement would definitely have an impact, particularly among young White women, a demographic where Democrats have historically struggled.
“She commands a humongous squad of particularly young White women,” Reid pointed out, adding that Swift’s modern vision of womanhood could resonate with those targeted by conservative figures like JD Vance.
Reid said, "People like Taylor Swift come in and culturally put forward a version of young womanhood that is super modern. And she has been relentlessly attacked by the JD Vance world as being a bad role model because she is unmarried."
"And so she now is leaning into the exact demographic that JD Vance relentlessly targets, that he relentlessly disrespects. And she commands so much popularity among her super fans that they’ve changed the NFL in a lot of ways. So it’s not a small endorsement. It’s a big deal,” Reid concluded.
Nicole Wallace expanded on this, observing that Swift’s fanbase includes not only young fans but also their parents.
“A lot of her fans are too young to buy concert tickets. So Taylor Swift's fandom is made up of fans and parents. Their moms and dads,” Wallace explained.
She suggested that Swift’s endorsement might open doors to “girl dads” and others concerned with issues such as choice and positive role models.
MSNBC panel reacts to Taylor Swift's endorsement
Chris Hayes noted the unexpected nature of the endorsement, commenting, “As a hopeless bleeding-heart liberal who’s also an enormous football fan, I didn’t think we get football in the national divorce —a Travis Kelce situation. I did not see that coming.”
He contrasted the cultural impact of Swift and other celebrities with the political endorsements from figures like Robert F Kennedy Jr.
Rachel Maddow later tore into Vance who she lambasted as “the protege” of “an eccentric right wing German billionaire who says democracy should have never been attempted.
Lawrence O'Donnell concluded that Swift’s endorsement is among the most crucial celebrity endorsements in recent presidential campaigns.
“I feel like I have never been impressed by celebrity endorsements. They tend to be people who the base already identifies with. This is, I think, the most important endorsement we have ever seen in a presidential campaign,” O'Donnell declared.
He praised the timing and delivery of the endorsement, calling it “perfectly timed and flawless", and highlighting its potential to significantly impact Harris’ campaign.
