Remember the Let's Go Brandon meme taking over timelines last year? Yep, it's still pushing through, but this time liberals have put a spin on it to support Joe Biden.
For context, the coded catchphrase was birthed at a NASCAR race in October. Driver Brandon Brown had received his first Xfinity Series race victory and was being interviewed by an NBC Sports reporter. Mid-interview, the Republican-heavy crowd erupted into chants which the interviewer passed off as "let's go Brandon", but it became increasingly clear they were yelling: "F*** Joe Biden".
It has since spread among right-wing circles, with Republican Rep Bill Posey of Florida ending a House floor speech with a fist pump and "Let’s go, Brandon!" South Carolina Republican Jeff Duncan sported a "Let’s Go Brandon" face mask at the Capitol, and Ted Cruz posed with a "Let’s Go Brandon" sign at the World Series.
There has since been a spin-off version under "Dark Brandon", often accompanied by edited depictions of Biden as an evil villain.
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While it appears to have started amongst conservatives, Biden supporters have given the meaning a new lease of life by turning it into something more positive.
On Monday (August 1), the Biden administration announced it killed Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in a drone strike over the weekend. Social media was soon flooded with "Dark Brandon" memes to acknowledge and celebrate what is said to be the biggest blow to the militants since Osama bin Laden was shot dead over a decade ago.
\u201cDark Brandon does it again \n\n#biden #DarkBrandon\u201d— Sebastian Loreti (@Sebastian Loreti) 1659397906
\u201cDark Brandon is rocking it!\u201d— Teri D. (@Teri D.) 1659441862
\u201cTrump gets covid, he goes to the hospital.\n\nBiden gets covid, he kills the head of al-qaeda.\n\nDon't mess with dark Brandon.\u201d— Alejandra Caraballo (@Alejandra Caraballo) 1659390930
\u201cDark Brandon goes into Trifecta Mode.\ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude0e\n\n\ud83d\udd25 Beats COVID TWICE\n\ud83d\udd25 Kills Top Al Qaeda Terrorist\n\ud83d\udd25 Continues to kick MAGA ass\u203c\ufe0f\n\nLet\u2019s Go #DarkBrandon \u203c\ufe0f\n#FreshResists #ONEV1\u201d— \u15f7ridget \uea00 not going back (@\u15f7ridget \uea00 not going back) 1659471241
\u201cHelp I was at a gas station with friends and one of them said something about the price going down and I was like \u201cThank you Dark Brandon!\u201d and nobody understood what that meant so I had to explain the meme lmaoooo\u201d— Sarah \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@Sarah \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1659187215
\u201cDark Brandon cannot be stopped.\u201d— \ud83e\ude7a Sassenach \ud83d\udc69\ud83c\udffd\u200d\ud83e\uddb1\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83e\udd1d\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 (@\ud83e\ude7a Sassenach \ud83d\udc69\ud83c\udffd\u200d\ud83e\uddb1\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83e\udd1d\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6) 1659390475
\u201cI don\u2019t know who started Dark Brandon but I like it!!\u201d— TinaW (@TinaW) 1659406386
\u201cDark Brandon strikes again\u201d— Dan (@Dan) 1659389710
The US confirmed the killing of al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri with a drone missile while he stood on a balcony at his home in Kabul.
"Now justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more," Biden said on Monday.
Foreign minister Liz Truss added: "The world will be a safer place."
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