Josh Mandel, a Republican candidate running for an Ohio Senate seat, was widely mocked after his attempt to troll Democrats online backfired.
Mandel, who has used his Twitter account to promote conspiracy theories about Covid-19 and to discourage vaccinations, childishly blasted Democrats, saying that you can't spell the word "panDEMic" without "DEM."
You can’t spell “panDEMic” without “DEM.” Is this a coincidence?— Josh Mandel (@Josh Mandel) 1632104834.0
Actually, the first use of the word "pandemic" can be traced back to the mid-17th.century, long before the modern Democratic Party existed.
It is derived from the Greek words pán, which means "all, every, whole," and dêmos, meaning "the people," a reference to the people residing in ancient Greek states.
And could Mandel have foreseen how his words could be turned against him into a spectacular self-own?
People trolled him right back.
You also can't spell "REPrehensible" without "REP." Is that a coincidence? https://t.co/ilPohYQ2hc— Kansas For Pete Buttigieg 🐝 (Jodi C) (@Kansas For Pete Buttigieg 🐝 (Jodi C)) 1632158558.0
You can't spell "Mandel" without thinking "ASSHOLE." https://t.co/Y4fzwhL37s— Kop*wow (@Kop*wow) 1632155072.0
YOU CAN’T SPELL PUBE JUICE WITHOUT PB&J REALLY MAKES U THINK same energy my guy https://t.co/gNm8EkDNir— Jon 🔬 (@Jon 🔬) 1632155975.0
The DEM comes from the Greek root meaning “PEOPLE” like in “DEMocracy.” Something else this traitor hates. https://t.co/eiBqAkwQf6— Planet K (@Planet K) 1632156141.0
JOSH: Jerk-Off Shithead--REPUGNANT, REPREHENSIBLE, REPROBATE, REPULSIVE. Is this a coincidence? I think not. https://t.co/uydTobIEKu— Biden my time. 🏳️🌈🇱🇷 (@Biden my time. 🏳️🌈🇱🇷) 1632158268.0
🙄using this brilliant logic, you can't spell "enDOGenous" without "DOG" so I apologize to this community for all th… https://t.co/tZTmo998h2— Doggonomics (@Doggonomics) 1632164462.0
You can’t spell gopher without GOP oh my god what does it mean are they all rodents? https://t.co/HSc82bbWAw— gbdawkins (@gbdawkins) 1632154803.0
And I can’t spell “stupid” without “u”! Coincidence? https://t.co/yqWcGgDfFC— Mary K. PFischer is Pfizered Up😷 (@Mary K. PFischer is Pfizered Up😷) 1632150846.0
Mandel's tweet is only his latest attempt to downplay the severity of the pandemic.
In a recent interview, he downplayed the severity of the pandemic, referring to vaccines as "immoral" and "unethical."
Earlier this month, he was accused of trivializing the Holocaust after he compared Covid-19 vaccine mandates to Nazi Germany and urged his followers to "NOT comply with the tyranny."