Over the past two years, Taylor Swift has gotten increasingly political, and she's vowed to be more so in the run-up to the presidential election.
She's now keeping that promise by calling out President Donald Trump for a controversial tweet.
After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence? 'When the looting starts the shooting starts'??? We will vote you out in November. @realdonaldtrump
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) May 29, 2020
Earlier Friday, Trump tweeted a response to news that protests in Minneapolis over the death of George Floyd, who died shortly after being apprehended by police earlier this week, had turned violent.
"These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won't let that happen," he wrote. "Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!"
Twitter flagged the president's tweet as having "violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence," but added, "Twitter has determined that it may be in the public's interest for the Tweet to remain accessible."
Swift, 30, clapped back almost immediately.
"After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence? 'When the looting starts the shooting starts'??? We will vote you out in November. @realdonaldtrump," she wrote.
The phrase "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" was reportedly used in 1967 by Miami police chief Walter Headley when talking about his controversial approach to policing black neighborhoods. Headley also said, "We don't mind being accused of police brutality."
Swift's tweet provoked outrage from many of her followers, with one claiming that she'd "lost a lot of fans" by criticizing the president. However, many others praised the singer for speaking out.
