This is hardly an original thought: Taylor Swift embodies a rare cultural presence and moment — and she’s everywhere. She inhabits her unique place in the world — amid an unusual amount of glare — with an unusual amount of grace. But now, and this is what feels oddly fresh to me, a lot of weirdness has attached itself to her. 

She’s encouraged people to register to vote without offering specific takes on the 2024 presidential election, but Fox News and several of its commentators keep warning her to stay out of politics. Others in Fox’s ranks say she’s a military embed that the federal government is using for psychological warfare (against who and for what, no one knows). And her romance with Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce? It’s fake, the same crowd says. It’s part of a different conspiracy, one crafted to get President Joe Biden re-elected or boost football ratings. Love simply can’t be the reason they’re together, I guess.