Horror icon Stephen King had a withering single word response to a fearmongering tweet from Ohio Republican Representative Jim Jordan, who suggested the government is "coming" for people's guns, gas stoves, and gas-guzzling cars.
Earlier Jordan appealed to common conservative fantasies that the Second Amendment will be on the chopping block in the event Democrats successfully pass comprehensive gun control.
He was also capitalizing on the latest manufactured conservative outrage concerning a floated "ban" on gas stoves by the commissioner for the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) due to the toxic chemicals released that can contribute to childhood asthma.
He wrote:
"First, they came for your guns."
"Then, your gas stoves."
"Then, your gas cars."
"What’s next?"
You can see his tweet below.
\u201cFirst, they came for your guns. \n\nThen, your gas stoves. \n\nThen, your gas cars. \n\nWhat\u2019s next?\u201d— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Rep. Jim Jordan) 1674844466
Jordan's tweet soon caught King's attention and King offered a simple response:
"You."
You can see King's tweet below.
\u201c@Jim_Jordan You.\u201d— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Rep. Jim Jordan) 1674844466
Many appreciated King's response.
\u201c\ud83d\udc4f\ud83c\udffb a perfect tweet\u201d— bb \ud83d\udcac \ud83d\udc1d (@bb \ud83d\udcac \ud83d\udc1d) 1675018777
\u201cAnd this is why he's my favorite author. \ud83d\ude02\u201d— Pat From Tn. (@Pat From Tn.) 1674938321
\u201cOf the thousands of responses to Gym Jordan's tweet, @StephenKing had the best, with the fewest words. Thanks Mr. King. Loved it!\u201d— (((AS))) (@(((AS)))) 1674943813
\u201cThe last thing I would want would be @StephenKing coming for me!\ud83d\ude05\u201d— Paul Saffo (@Paul Saffo) 1674947279
\u201cGym got the best one-word smackdown ever.\u201d— @My2cents (@@My2cents) 1674962723
Others criticized Jordan directly.
\u201cNone of these things are true. We asked for gun reform to take guns out of schools. Gas stoves and gas cars are cool, so is electric.\u201d— Hassan Martini (@Hassan Martini) 1674913212
\u201cThis is such a great example of how gaslighting and made up grievances define modern conservatism\n\nLiterally none of these things have happened.\u201d— Michael Cohen (@Michael Cohen) 1674923869
\u201cPROVE IT\nWhy do you lie?\u201d— Auntie Susie Bunny \ud83d\udc30 (@Auntie Susie Bunny \ud83d\udc30) 1675013920
\u201cTell me who took your gun, gas stove and gas car.\u201d— mac27 (@mac27) 1674901711
And still others noted he had issued the tweet—a riff off the German theologian Martin Niemöller's post-war confessional poem "First they came..."—on Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The backlash was swift.
\u201cJust put 2 and 2 together to realize he tweeted this on Holocaust Remembrance Day. What an absolute turd of a human being.\u201d— Jeff Lazarus (@Jeff Lazarus) 1675037847
\u201cThe original poem was about human victims of Nazi Germany. Jim Jordan redid it to be about gas stoves. On Holocaust Remembrace Day.\n\nThis tweet is not getting enough attention. It is one of the most vile tweets I've ever seen.\u201d— C-Bo the Eggman (@C-Bo the Eggman) 1675040365
\u201cHere\u2019s the original poem about the Holocaust by Pastor Martin Niem\u00f6ller. Congressman Jordan\u2019s rendition is frankly offensive.\u201d— Jonathan Reiner (@Jonathan Reiner) 1674923064
\u201cOn Holocaust Remembrance Day, Jim Jordan tweets about gas stoves and guns. \n\nYou can't make this shyt up. #Clueless\u201d— enrich12 (@enrich12) 1674906726
Although CPSC Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. shut down claims his agency is on the cusp of banning gas stoves—he is considering new regulations on gas stoves to "reduce related indoor air quality hazards"—it hasn't stopped Republicans from conjuring images of federal agents storming into people's homes and taking gas stoves by force.
Earlier this month, Florida Republican Representative Matt Gaetz couldn't help but weigh in on this conservative bogeyman of government overreach, saying in a Twitter post we'll "have to pry" his gas stove "from [his] COLD DEAD HANDS!"
Gaetz accompanied his statement with a video of his gas stove blazing defiantly, and the tweet was so absurd that Twitter users couldn't help but pile on him for making such a childish tweet.
