Trump says 'I hate Taylor Swift' in social media post

Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump levelled an attack against Taylor Swift, declaring his "hate" for her just days after the pop mega-star endorsed his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris.

In an all-caps posting on his Truth Social media account on Sunday, Trump wrote, "I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!"

Immediately following last week's Trump-Harris debate, Swift informed her 284 million Instagram followers that she planned to vote for Harris, currently the US vice president, "because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them."

Trump, who has 7.71 million followers on Truth Social, initially dismissed Swift's endorsement of Harris by saying he was "not a Taylor fan."

But since then, with public opinion polls showing Harris gaining significant ground on Trump in what is expected to be a close November 5 presidential election, the former president has ratcheted up his rhetoric against one of the most successful recording artists in history.

Swift's backing of Harris has drawn over 9 million "likes" to her Instagram post, fuelling speculation that it could boost the Democrat's chances of winning the presidential election.

'Smallest man who ever lived'

After the Trump post, Harris' vice presidential running mate Tim Walz wrote on X: "Swifties: With your help, we're gonna defeat the smallest man who ever lived."

One of Swift's songs is titled "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived."

Trump's rage against Swift brought a torrent of supporters to proclaim on X, "I LOVE TAYLOR SWIFT," while others came to Trump's defence by attacking the administration of Democratic President Joe Biden.

It was not clear what Trump hoped to gain by attacking Swift, though he may calculate that any publicity is better than none.

Trump and Swift have been trading barbs for years.

After she supported Democratic candidates in the 2018 elections, Trump said in response to reporters' questions at the White House: "Let's say that I like Taylor's music about 25 percent less now."