Young leftists cry “lynching” over Gov. Greg Abbott’s “get a rope” tweet but missed his classic 80s reference

Republican Governor of Texas Greg Abbott sent Twitter lefties into a fit last night when he responded to a supporter who jokingly asked him what he’d do to solve a big problem: Whataburger was out of Dr. Pepper.

Governor Abbot responded with a joke that referenced an old salsa commercial that was popular throughout the 80s and 90s:

“Get a rope.”

That joke didn’t play well with a crowd that might watch Stranger Things on Netflix, but never actually experienced the 80s first hand. Abbott was referencing a classic Pace Salsa commercial starring Burton Gilliam (from Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles). Abbot isn’t even the first Texas politician to make this reference. He’s not even the first one to make the reference this year. It’s quite popular.

For those of you who are unfamiliar, be sure to catch the two clips embedded below.

Apparently, the reference was a bit dated for the overly sensitive Twitter crowd, since it flew high above the heads of angry internet activists who launched a series of whining Tweets ranging from demands for apologies, to condemnations of racism, and eventually to outright accusations that the Governor of Texas was proposing murder over a lack of soda.

Even a Daily Caller millennial seemed to express confused disapproval

Greg Abbott eventually responded:

“Lighten up dude. It’s a line ripped off of the Pace Picante Get A Rope Commercial,” he responded while quoting one agitated e-activist that wasn’t versed in his salsa promotional history.

“Put a smile on your face. Go to Whataburger & order a double with cheese & jalapeños. Be sure to choose the spicy ketchup! Tell them Dr. Pepper sent you,” Abbott retorted.

Here’s the commercial with the line Abbott was referencing:

This isn’t the first time a Texan has made a reference to the Pace Salsa commercial either

Texans still love the “tongue in cheek” Pace commercial even to this day as ValueWalk noted in 2015. Or, if that’s not good enough, as the New York Times noted in 2013.

Just last month, for instance, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller read a Facebook post about a Veteran’s Day parade in his hometown of Stephenville denying entry to a Confederate group. His response? “Get a rope.”

And the “get a rope” comment was popular among Republican candidates from Texas during the 2016 election, too.

In 2016, when the feud between President Donald Trump and Ted Cruz was at its zenith, Rick Perry was asked about comments Cruz made concerning New York liberals. He had this to say: “I would hope there’s enough humor in that person to understand that, hey listen, we all make fun of New York. I mean, come on, ‘New York City? Get a rope.’ Remember that ad, for the picante sauce?”

And Ted Cruz? He made references to the Pace ad twice while campaigning: once in January and once in February that same year:

CRUZ: You know, there’s an old — old Pace Picante ad, if you remember about —

KELLY: They know what you’re talking about.

CRUZ: Talking about where this picante sauce comes from and they look at the can and say, New York City? New York City, get a rope!

For what it’s worth, Robert Hirsch, the New Yorker who took over Pace’s marketing in the late 90s attributed the slogan to the company’s brand recognition throughout the country.

“I think the biggest strength of the campaign was the memorabilia, everybody remembers: ‘New York City! Get a Rope,'” Hirsch said.

Pace followed up their commercial with one that shows precisely what that rope was used for:

Here’s some more outrage, if you’re into that sort of thing:

A failed Texas candidate for Congress had this to say:

A Democrat candidate for state legislature even tried to weigh in

Then there were all these bright folks