President Donald Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, has been mocked on social media after he compared the campaign with the Death Star from Star Wars.
Parscale used the reference, along with a movie GIF, to tease the ads against Joe Biden. “For nearly three years we have been building a juggernaut campaign (Death Star). It is firing on all cylinders. Data, Digital, TV, Political, Surrogates, Coalitions, etc. In a few days we start pressing FIRE for the first time,” he tweeted.
In a follow-up tweet, he said, “I didn’t give our campaign the name, Death Star, the media did. However, I am happy to use the analogy. The fact is, we haven’t used it yet. Laugh all you want, we will take the win!”
For context, Death Star is a space station in Star Wars films that is equipped with a planet-destroying super laser constructed by the Empire. The station is destroyed at the end, a point that didn’t go unnoticed by internet users, who used it to poke fun at Team Trump.
“Dude, the Death Star gets blown up in the end of just about every Star Wars movie,” MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough wrote. “I’m a little rusty but the only use of the Death Star was to kill millions of civilians as an act of terror in service of building a fascist republic, right? A little too on the nose,” another Twitter user commented.
Newsweek’s Andrew Feinberg reminded Parscale that “the media,” specifically The Atlantic, had quoted a Republican strategist instead of “coming up with the Death Star name” for Trump’s campaign.
Some Twitter users criticized Parscale for referencing the Death Star, especially when the coronavirus pandemic has killed over 70,000 people in the US. “Hard to imagine the Campaign Manager getting away with referring to their campaign apparatus as the ‘Death Star’ in the middle of a pandemic that has killed 75,000 in weeks,” Matt Rogers said.
This is not the first time Trump’s re-election team has referenced Star Wars in its campaign. Recently, Trump’s face was superimposed on Yoda in a video depicting him killing off cable news networks with a lightsaber.
For nearly three years we have been building a juggernaut campaign (Death Star). It is firing on all cylinders. Data, Digital, TV, Political, Surrogates, Coalitions, etc.
In a few days we start pressing FIRE for the first time. pic.twitter.com/aJgCNfx1m0
— Brad Parscale – Download our Trump 2020 App today! (@parscale) May 7, 2020
I didn’t give our campaign the name, Death Star, the media did. However, I am happy to use the analogy. The fact is, we haven’t used it yet. Laugh all you want, we will take the win!
— Brad Parscale – Download our Trump 2020 App today! (@parscale) May 7, 2020
Who chooses to portray themselves as the Death Star?
— Barb McQuade (@BarbMcQuade) May 7, 2020
Didn’t make it till the end of Star Wars, huh?
— Molly Jong-Fast🏡 (@MollyJongFast) May 7, 2020
No, “the media” did not come up with the “Death Star” name for the Trump 2020 campaign.
A “Republican strategist” used it while speaking to @mckaycoppins on background for a story in which @parscale appears prominently. https://t.co/ahdUBd92Bx pic.twitter.com/ZHBPUowjPy
— Andrew Feinberg (@AndrewFeinberg) May 7, 2020
Dude, the Death Star gets blown up in the end of just about every Star Wars movie. Why don’t you just brag about the Great Pumpkin rising from the pumpkin patch this fall? With all the money you’ve made off of Trump, spend a few of your millions of dollars streaming some movies. https://t.co/ZWqT8dQBqw
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) May 7, 2020
We’ve got your Death Star right here, @parscale. https://t.co/iPwIcPSfNj pic.twitter.com/utHm9KT6qX
— Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) May 7, 2020
I’m a little rusty on my Star Wars, but the only use of the Death Star was to kill millions of civilians as an act of terror in service of building a fascist republic, right? A little too on the nose.
— Dan Murphy (@bungdan) May 7, 2020
Got a fun story for you about what happens to the Death Star https://t.co/vaqUgzq79y
— Rob Flaherty (@Rob_Flaherty) May 7, 2020
Hard to imagine the Campaign Manager of any other campaign in history getting away with referring to their campaign apparatus as the “Death Star” in the middle of a pandemic that’s killed 75,000 Americans in weeks.
— Matt Rogers 🎙️ (@Politidope) May 7, 2020
You do understand that the people who built the Death Star were the bad guys, right? Also they lost. https://t.co/U0g5nYCet9
— Gary Whitta (@garywhitta) May 7, 2020
I’m taking it you don’t know what happened to the Death Star? pic.twitter.com/LzNm4NKlfP
— Chris D. Jackson (@ChrisDJackson) May 7, 2020
[via