Case in point: Parscale last week took to the president's fave social media platform to accuse toymaker LEGO of yanking its kits from shelves that feature cops, firefighters and first responders. "What does @JoeBiden think about LEGO erasing cops?" he demanded of the presumptive Democratic nominee.
Problem is LEGO did nothing of the sort. And, even though the company's official Twitter account directly reached out to Parscale to set the record straight, he still hasn't removed his tweet.
This is nuts.@LEGO_Group is removing playsets featuring police, firefighters & emergency vehicles.
— Brad Parscale (@parscale) June 4, 2020
Even ditching an adult White House kit.
We ought to stress the good in law enforcement for kids.
What does @JoeBiden think about LEGO erasing cops?https://t.co/NMzHHe6qyI
In both its direct outreach to Parscale and a separate tweet to followers, LEGO explained that it hadn't taken toys off the shelves. The company only temporarily paused online marketing of the kits — something brands do to avoid accusations of insensitivity during national crises, Mediate reports.
“Given the tragic events in the U.S. over the past 10 days, we paused digital marketing of sets that could be perceived insensitive if promoted at this time,” LEGO Senior Director of Brand Relations Michael McNally told the Dispatch Fact Check.
While Parscale's original tweet remains, that's probably not much of a surprise to those who have tracked his climb from anonymous San Antonio techie to Trump family insider. As suggested by a lengthy ProPublica investigation, Parscale isn't exactly one to let the facts stand in the way of a good outrage.
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