If you’re totally compos mentis, you already know that the right-wing conspiracy theories about Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Joe Biden, Super Bowl LVIII, and the 2024 election do not have any basis in reality. Nevertheless, given that they’re absolutely gripping certain segments of the population, the Pentagon has felt the need to officially weigh in to make clear that Taylor Swift is not at the center of a government plot—specifically a “psyop”—to reelect Biden.

In a statement, deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told Politico: “To set the record straight—Taylor Swift is not part of a DOD psychological operation. Period.” While the conspiracy theories surrounding Swift reached a fever pitch this weekend after her boyfriend’s football team clinched its spot in the Super Bowl, the arguably most deranged moment came last month when a Fox News anchor went on the air and declared, not as a joke, “Around four years ago, the Pentagon psychological operations unit floated turning Taylor Swift into an asset during a NATO meeting.”

“The absurdity of it all boggles the mind,” a senior administration official told the outlet. “It feels like one of those ‘tell me you are a MAGA conspiracy theorist without telling me you are a MAGA conspiracy theorist’ memes.” According to Politico, the Pentagon initially responded to the unhinged claim regarding Swift being part of a psyop last month, but the denial apparently didn’t take.

Also weighing in on the matter this week was GOP presidential hopeful Nikki Haley, who said Thursday, “To have a conspiracy theory of all of this is bizarre.”

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