What better way to defeat a political opponent than by attacking their race, gender, or religion, amiright?
Fox News Anchor Lou Dobbs is being heavily mocked on social media for his Tweet accusing Evan McMullin (a conservative third-party contender for the presidential race) of being part of the “Mormon Mafia,” whatever that is:
Look Deeper, He's nothing but a Globalist, Romney and Mormon Mafia Tool #MAGA #AmericaFirst #TrumpPence16 #TrumpTrain #Dobbs https://t.co/WfjYzck2jt
— Lou Dobbs (@LouDobbs) October 23, 2016
McMullin (like former presidential candidate Mitt Romney), is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, aka Latter-Day Saint or the more popular “Mormon” for short.
Dobbs, it seems, says Donald Trump is a “very, very smart man,” and is “waking up America.”
So, I guess it’s not surprising that he would defensively lash out at McMullin as a threat to Trump’s campaign.
As you can see, there was a huge spike in activity Wednesday night when the Tweet went viral and folks started giving their own input:
Business Insider reported McMullin’s response, as did CNN, but what is more interesting is the way Twitter took the hashtag and ran with it.
A large percentage were filled with “Mormon jokes” — slightly sarcastic cultural references that you will probably laugh harder at if you’re actually Mormon. Here are some honorable mentions:
They don't call them funeral potatoes for nothing… #MormonMafia pic.twitter.com/0VQuPICGLz
— Rachel Reviews Movies and Theatre (@rachel_reviews) October 27, 2016
https://twitter.com/Philip_R_Moon/status/791498530804293633
If you're not careful Mormon Mafia will break into your house —- fold the laundry and do the dishes
— Jennifer Truth Over Phony Balance Rubin 🇺🇦🇮🇱 (@JRubinBlogger) October 27, 2016
Revenge? Nah. Green jello is a dish best served cold.#MormonMafia @LouDobbs
— Adam S Whitaker (@adamswhitaker) October 28, 2016
The Sopranos. #MormonMafia pic.twitter.com/wO4Te0Behy
— All-Knowing Suit 🎙 (@AllknowingSuit) October 27, 2016
Best #MormonMafia tweet? Honorable mention: I'm not sayin' I brought your trash cans up from the curb, but I’m not saying I didn’t either.
— Glenn Beck (@glennbeck) October 28, 2016
"And slightly less well known, don't go against a Mormon when the presidency is on the line!"
*evil laughter* #mormonmafia #princessbride— Kevin (@kevinelarson) October 28, 2016
Nice charity you have there. Shame if we donated to it. #MormonMafia
— Dan 🇺🇸 (@danieltobin) October 27, 2016
"Gosh darn it, you messed with the wrong fellows this time, you nincompoop!" #MormonMafia
— Sunny McSunnyface (Taylor's Version) (@sunnyright) October 27, 2016
Some, though, were actually rallying cries for McMullin’s campaign. There even seems to be some talk of “Mormon Mafia” becoming the collective term for McMullin supporters (similar to Trumpkins or a fandom name for a celebrity). This seems loose at this stage, but Twitter expressed lots of inclusivity as to who can be a McMullin supporter:
To assume a vote for @Evan_McMullin takes a vote from Repubs or Dems is to assume it was theirs to begin with. It wasn't. #MormonMafia
— Mister H (@ATHudd) October 28, 2016
https://twitter.com/DavidCline/status/792032233712455680
.@LouDobbs proves the fact @GOP has problems w/whole groups of Americans. #mormonmafia #vote .@Evan_McMullin https://t.co/MsKN98FxWQ
— ~•just simply me•~ (@1sweetlyfierce1) October 28, 2016
Sentiment surrouding #MormonMafia was mostly positive, the negative 25% filled with a healthy smattering of sarcasm. Sure, there were plenty of Twitter users who used the hashtag to express displeasure at McMullin’s campaign, arguing that it will dilute the votes or that some Mormons will vote for McMullin purely on religion alone.
Mostly, however, Dobbs’ post sparked a flurry of witticisms and banter. Just another example of why you should be careful what you Tweet– you might end up the butt of your own joke.
