NASCAR Doesn't Want Anything to Do With 'Let's Go, Brandon'

"Let's go, Brandon," an anti-Biden catchphrase, has caught fire in recent weeks in conservative circles. But one big company is now trying to distance itself, with a warning. "It's an unfortunate situation," NASCAR President Steve Phelps said Friday of the slogan, per the AP. "I think unfortunately it speaks to the state of where we are as a country." The phrase took hold last month after the crowd was heard chanting "F--- Joe Biden!" in the background while NBC Sports reporter Kelli Stavast was interviewing driver Brandon Brown. Stavast told Brown, inaccurately, that the crowd was yelling, "Let's go, Brandon."

But while the phrase has since shown up in tweets, on T-shirts, and even in song lyrics, Phelps doesn't want it tied to NASCAR, and he says the motorsports company will look into legal action if anyone tries to use NASCAR trademarks in association with "Let's go, Brandon" on merch. "We will pursue whoever [is using logos] and get that stuff," Phelps noted. "It's not OK that you're using our trademarks illegally, regardless of whether we agree with what the position is."

Phelps' statement came after retired MLB player Lenny Dykstra put up a tweet Wednesday cheering on a man wearing a "Let's go, Brandon" T-shirt, along with a #FJB (F--- Joe Biden) hashtag and NASCAR's familiar colored bars. Phelps noted Friday, "Do we like the fact that it kind of started with NASCAR and then is gaining ground out elsewhere? No, we're not happy about that." He added, "We do not want to associate ourselves with politics, the left or the right."

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The AP pushes back somewhat on that last remark, noting that NASCAR has taken "aggressive positions" on social justice issues—including last year banning the Confederate flag from its events—and long allowed political candidates to use its races as stops along the campaign trail, including former President Donald Trump, who was the honorary starter at 2020's Daytona 500. Speaking of Trump, the Hill notes his campaign team is now offering a special incentive for anyone donating $45 or more: a "Let's go, Brandon" T-shirt. (More NASCAR stories.)