The internet reacts to John McCain’s call for more Twitter followers by unfollowing him

People are unfollowing Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) on Twitter to make their distaste for the recently passed tax reform bill known. The bill was passed on Saturday and has multiple pitfalls, as identified by The New York Times. These include a tax cut for the rich, more taxes for graduate students, raised taxes for millions of middle-class families, and permission for oil and gas drilling in an Alaskan wildlife refuge, among many other nightmare scenarios disguised as economic stimulus measures.

McCain, who voted in favor of the bill, tweeted today that he was just 74 followers shy of 3 million, and he asked people to share the message and help him out. Many on Twitter responded by promptly unfollowing the senator.

Unfollowing McCain when he asked for followers can be seen as a visible form of social activism toward something that the majority of Americans no longer have any direct control over. It’s a small gesture, and an ultimately meaningless one with regards to affecting actual legislation. But thousands have already voiced their concern, with many tweeting back to McCain in anger and boosting an already abysmal reply-to-retweet ratio to historic levels.

With some luck, McCain may forever be stuck with 2.99 million followers.