Throughout his campaign, Colorado's incumbent Republican senator has tried to come across as a chummy regular guy in his own ads while relying on highly funded surrogates to portray his opponent, ex-governor John Hickenlooper, as a cross between Genghis Khan and Hannibal Lecter. Now, however, Gardner must figure out a way to maintain his friendly image even as he embraces a leader who came across during last night's performance as the sort of person from whom responsible parents would shield their children if they encountered him on the street.
Gardner has yet to share an official response regarding Trump's embrace of the even darker side. But at least voters in need of a laugh have a place to enjoy one, albeit at his expense.
We're talking about @yeetcorygardneragain, a satirical Instagram sequel to @yeetcorygardner, a predecessor that vanished under mysterious circumstances.
The original page popped up without fanfare last week and quickly made a mark with its deadpan humor. The format boasted generic photos of the senator overlaid with phrases meant to make him seem like a clueless buffoon.
Examples? "Cory Gardner tried to call ICE on Illegal Pete's." "Cory Gardner's favorite craft beer is Coors Light." And the pièce de résistance, "Cory Gardner Goes to Casa Bonita for the Food."
The word-of-mouth buzz over these items resulted in the page zooming past 10,000 followers with lightning speed, only to disappear as quickly as it appeared.
Then, on the morning of September 29, @yeetcorygardneragain arrived. "Formerly @yeetcorygardner. Still a satire account. Still not affiliated with any candidates," its description reads. Also shared was a post that states: "Well gang. @yeetcorygardner has been disabled. Working to get it back. In the meantime, donate + email...for a sticker!"
We sent a series of questions to the email address provided and have not yet received a reply. For now, though, we're simply thrilled to have a reason to smile about politics again. After last night, that seemed like an impossible dream.
Here are the first salvos from @yeetcorygardneragain.
