John McCain: Thousands Of Twitter Users Unfollow Arizona Senator After His Request For More Followers
Longtime Arizona Senator John McCain recently reached out to Twitter users and asked for their help in his effort to reach 3 million followers on the social media platform. However, his plan backfired, and thousands of Twitter users unfollowed the 81-year-old senator in just a few hours. According to a report from Fortune, the massive unfollowing was due to McCain’s vote last week to help pass the Senate GOP’s massive tax reform bill.
On Monday afternoon, McCain only needed 74 more Twitter followers to reach the 3 million milestone. Had he reached this mark, McCain would’ve joined senators Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and Cory Booker as the only senators with at least 3 million Twitter followers. Approximately six hours after McCain’s request for more Twitter followers, 17,000 people hit the “unfollow” button on his account, the New York Daily News reports. Many users expressed their dismay with McCain’s vote to approve the GOP tax bill — which was passed by the Senate on Friday — and also criticized his recent support for the tax bill that is said to hurt the poor and help the rich, the publication wrote.
The following comments are what some Twitter users had to say about the matter.
“Judging by the responses to this thread you’re gonna need more than 74. I just unfollowed you since you voted to throw 98% of Americans under the bus on Friday, but will be happy to follow again if you vote no on the final #GOPTaxScam,” one user wrote.
“Unfollowed… should have reconsidered that tax scam vote,” another upset user said.
We're only 74 Twitter followers away from 3M – spread the word & help us reach this big milestone!
— John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) December 4, 2017
#UnfollowMcCain born when Sen. McCain asked Twitter for more followers, he’s lost thousands since. #TheResistancehttps://t.co/lpltqfyW3c
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) December 5, 2017
It’s not surprising that many Twitter users unfollowed the senator due to his vote on the GOP tax bill because it reportedly is the biggest rewrite of the individual and corporate tax code in the United States in 30 years and one that offers huge tax cuts to banks, developers, and the oil industry, amongst other corporate interests.
Furthermore, according to Politico, the bill is riddled with bugs, loopholes, and other potential problems that could plague lawmakers long after their legislation is signed into law. The main objective of the GOP tax bill, which is also called “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” is to cut taxes on businesses. Legislators on both sides have said that the United States’ 35 percent top tax rate on corporations is too high. The newly-passed Senate bill would lower that rate to 20 percent, which marks the biggest drop ever for corporations. The big business cut would be permanent, while the rate reductions for real people are set to expire after 2025.
Although McCain saw a huge drop in his Twitter followers shortly after asking for more, he eventually surpassed 3 million followers on Tuesday afternoon.
