Former President Donald Trump recently landed himself in hot waters after he shared an AI-crafted image of pop star Taylor Swift . The snap depicted her gesturing to her fans with a call to vote for him. This move led to immense outrage among Swifties, who accused Trump of spreading false information. Given Swift’s reputation for vigorously safeguarding her image, Fox Business questioned Trump about the possibility of a lawsuit . Trump’s response seemed to be a mix of both denial and concern.
Trump was asked, “Are you worried that Taylor Swift is going to sue you?” to which he replied, “I don’t know anything about them, other than somebody else generated them. I didn’t generate them. Somebody came out, and they said, ‘Oh, look at this.’ These were all made up by other people.” As reported by BuzzFeed , the Republican nominee added, “AI is always very dangerous in that way. It’s happening with me, too. They’re having me speak. I speak perfectly, I mean, absolutely perfectly on AI, and I’m like endorsing other products and things. It’s a little bit dangerous out there.”
Former President Trump on the AI-generated images of Taylor Swift: “I don’t know anything about them other than somebody else generated them.” pic.twitter.com/gBEzxx4L4o
— Grady Trimble (@Grady_Trimble) August 21, 2024
The AI-generated campaign poster had the text “Taylor Wants You To Vote For Donald Trump.” Trump captioned the post, “I accept!” Legal experts and celebrity attorneys now suggest that Swift might have a strong case to take legal action against him. Neama Rahmani, president and founder of West Coast Trial Lawyers, said, “Swift could sue Trump and those who misappropriated her likeness by creating AI-generated images. Privacy torts protect people from having their name, image, or likeness used without their permission. Manipulating it using AI doesn’t change things.” Rahmani also claimed that Swift’s lawyers are quite aggressive. As reported by Newsweek , she added, “So I wouldn’t be surprised if they send the Trump campaign a cease-and-desist letter at a minimum.”
Harry Surden, a law professor at the University of Colorado, also suggested that the pop star’s strongest move might be to publicly challenge Trump. He said, “Swift’s best option, in my opinion, is not legal in nature, but to publicly communicate that Trump’s use of her image and endorsement is false and misleading. She could also send a public cease-and-desist letter.”
Donald Trump’s ineffective leadership gravely worsened the crisis that we are in and he is now taking advantage of it to subvert and destroy our right to vote and vote safely. Request a ballot early. Vote early.
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) August 15, 2020
Swift backed the Democratic Party in both 2016 and 2020. She has also criticized Trump’s leadership several times. In 2020, on X, she penned, “Trump’s calculated dismantling of USPS proves one thing clearly— He is WELL AWARE that we do not want him as our president. He’s chosen to blatantly cheat and put millions of Americans’ lives at risk in an effort to hold on to power.” She continued, “Donald Trump’s ineffective leadership gravely worsened the crisis that we are in and he is now taking advantage of it to subvert and destroy our right to vote and vote safely. Request a ballot early. Vote early.”