#FireChuckTodd Trends on Twitter After MSNBC Host Quotes Comparison of Sanders Supporters to Brownshirts

The hashtag #FireChuckTodd has been trending on Twitter since Monday night, when the MSNBC host quoted an article that described Bernie Sanders’ online supporters as a “digital brownshirt brigade,” comparing staunch supporters of the Jewish candidate to Nazi paramilitary soldiers.

The comment was made on Monday during a segment about today’s New Hampshire primary, after Todd confessed to being on the “receiving end of the Bernie online brigade.” He subsequently quoted an article by Jonathan Last in The Bulwark that used the same comparison.

Todd’s exact words were:

I want to bring up something that Jonathan Last put in the Bulwark today, and it was about how—and Ruth we’ve all been on the receiving end of the Bernie online brigade. Here’s what he says: ‘No other candidate has anything like this sort of digital brownshirt brigade. I mean, except for Donald Trump. The question no one is asking is this: What if you can’t win the presidency without an online mob? What if we now live in a world where having a bullying, agro social media army running around popping anyone who sticks their head up is either an important ingredient for, or a critical marker of, success?’

Todd seemed to find the comparison to Trump supporters especially striking, saying: “I know everybody’s freaking out about this, but you saw the MAGA rally that’s preparing around here. There are people coming from three or four states on that. This is like Bernie.”

The hashtag #FireChuckTodd immediately took off on Twitter, with Bernie supporters lamenting their comparison to Trump supporters and Nazis.

Sanders’ speechwriter David Sirota responded to Todd’s comment on Twitter, saying: “MSNBC seems very frightened that ordinary voters, many of whom use the Internet, may actually get to participate in deciding who wins the presidency.”

“What if you can’t win the presidency without an online mob?” — MSNBC seems very frightened that ordinary voters, many of whom use the Internet, may actually get to participate in deciding who wins the presidency pic.twitter.com/nPM5c8DF1n

— David Sirota (@davidsirota) February 10, 2020

Briahna Gray, Sanders’ national press secretary, also opposed Todd’s comparison on Twitter, saying: ”’Digital brown shirt brigade.’ That’s how our Jewish candidate’s supporters are being described on the MSM. The contempt shown for ordinary people is really something.”

“Digital brown shirt brigade.”

That’s how our Jewish candidate’s supporters are being described on the MSM.

The contempt shown for ordinary people is really something. https://t.co/Nu6CP9fAMq

— Briahna Solidarity Gray (@briebriejoy) February 10, 2020

Sander’s numbers have only continued to surge in the polls these past few weeks before New Hampshire, with PEte Buttigieg close behind since Iowa. The polls in New Hampshire close at 7 p.m.

You can watch Todd quote the Last piece below.