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This 'IDK Not Trump Tho 2016' Sign Could Make America Great Again
An L.A.-based comedian has created a unique election sign for exactly who he doesn't want in the White House—Donald Trump—and that sign is suddenly in huge demand with those who share his sentiment. While yesterday's Super Tuesday primaries may have revealed support for Trump in parts of the country, many people would rather see anyone else in the office besides the real estate mogul. Comedian Dave Ross is one of those people.
In January, the 33-year old Ross created an official-looking, campaign sign that read “IDK Not Trump Tho 2016,” put it on his lawn and shared the image on Twitter. Perhaps not surprisingly, it caught fire. Within two and a half hours, the image had 4,000 retweets, at which point Ross decided to capitalize on its popularity.
"The sign honestly just came from coming across a place that prints custom campaign signs and thinking it would be funny to make one." Ross tells LAist. "I've also just always thought it was funny make the internet a part of the real world, and I am absolutely terrified of Donald Trump, and thus, IDK NOT TRUMP THO."
I never ever ever put up campaign signs but I feel very strongly this year so I had one made! pic.twitter.com/MhuUetR5EW
— DAVE ROSS (@davetotheross) January 13, 2016
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“I just thought it was funny and I do a lot of dumb stuff like this,” Ross told BuzzFeed. “I like merch; the physical creations of jokes.”
He created a website to sell T-shirts, signs and bumper stickers with the slogan, and they went fast. He soon sold 500 shirts and a total of 500 stickers and signs. “It paid my rent for four to five months, which is crazy and great,” Ross said.
As the popularity of the slogan quickly grew, Ross was approached by Urban Outfitters, who asked if they could license it for t-shirts. The shirts are now in production, and will soon be available in stores and online, according to Ross.
And while his website is not selling any merchandise at the moment, he promises to make some available soon. Maybe he'll consider selling Trumpiñatas, too.
Though, as far as future plans, Ross tells us that he's going to stick to comedy rather than pursue a career in politics:
I have no plans for related projects, no. I have plans for projects! SO MANY PROJECTS. But this was never anything more than a dumb joke to me, so when it blew up, I was so thrilled and happy, but the bigger it gets the more it just makes the joke funnier to me. IDK NOT TRUMP THO isn't a mantra or anything, and it's not stand-up. Stand-up is my main thing, so I'm working hard on that. And also tv, and sketch, and other writing. And making a new podcast. I also just started a fake religion. I'd say campaign signs are 9th or 10th on the list for me.
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He also adds, "If Trump became president, I am 100% sure that everyone who disagreed with him would be put in camps."
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