Trump campaign manager mocked for ‘Death Star’ comparison

President Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, was mocked on social media Thursday for comparing the campaign to the Death Star, a space station with a galactic weapon constructed by the Empire that gets blown up in two “Star Wars” films.

Parscale used the reference and a movie GIF to tease out a forthcoming onslaught of ads against presumptive Democratic nominee 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 wrote.

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

The moon-sized battle stations featured in the first “Star Wars” film and in “Return of the Jedi” are equipped with a planet-destroying super laser. Both are destroyed by the Rebel Alliance, something that didn’t to unnoticed by thousands of social media users who poked fun at Parscale, causing “Death Star” to trend on Twitter.

“Dude, the Death Star gets blown up in the end of just about every Star Wars movie,” MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” co-host Joe Scarborough wrote. “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.”

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,” Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) wrote. 

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

The comparison was also seized on by Biden’s campaign.

Rob Flaherty, Biden’s digital director, wrote: “Got a fun story for you about what happens to the Death Star.”

Got a fun story for you about what happens to the Death Star https://t.co/vaqUgzq79y

— Rob Flaherty (@Rob_Flaherty) May 7, 2020

Biden’s director of rapid response Andrew Bates simply responded with the Election Day date for November.

11/3/2020 https://t.co/oYLjM4euls pic.twitter.com/qNAcq2Hux5

— Andrew Bates (@AndrewBatesNC) May 7, 2020

Some Twitter users criticized Parscale for referencing the Death Star during the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 73,573 people in the U.S.

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

Trump’s campaign manager named their 2020 reelection campaign “Death Star.” It’s an odd choice, considering:

1) 70k real Americans have died under Trump’s watch in a month
2) The Empire were… the baddies, &
3) The Death Star is a symbol for hubris that gets blown up. Always.

— Dave Wagner (@Dbwagner104) May 7, 2020

But Parscale said he was “happy to use the analogy.”

“Laugh all you want, we will take the win!” he later wrote.

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

This is not the first time Team Trump has been mocked for a pop culture reference.

In January 2019, Trump unveiled a “Game of Thrones”-inspired meme in support of his plan for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. However, the wall depicted in the hit HBO show had proven ineffective when it was destroyed.