When Chase Nunes joined Twitter way back near the beginning of the social media site, in August 2008, he secured the profile name @Nunes. A year after that, California Rep. Devin Nunes signed up, and went with the @DevinNunes handle.
Eight years later, the congressman is featuring heavily in news related to President Trump and potential ties to Russia. Chase Nunes (pronounced new-nez) is a news man himself, as a broadcast engineer for KOMO4 TV in Seattle. And this month he’s seen an interesting uptick in his Twitter mentions.
“Starting roughly two weeks ago, I started getting extra chatter and mentions on my personal Twitter account,” Chase said in an email to GeekWire. “Now usually, I love mentions, both good and bad. I love engaging in social media and socializing on the internet, even creating loads of content, so when I get feedback, I usually respond.”
Indeed, Chase has been quite active over the years, tweeting more than 17,000 times and attracting 5,870 followers. It doesn’t hurt that he founded and runs the 12-year-old GeekGamer.TV, a site dedicated to the ins and outs of technology and gaming.
But his new mentions weren’t about gaming or anything else. They were misdirected tweets meant for the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, who among other things, said recently that “Trump or members of his transition team might have been ‘incidentally’ caught up in legal surveillance of foreign operatives by American spy agencies,” according to The New York Times. Nunes also refused to recuse himself from his panel’s investigation into Russian meddling in the presidential election.
Tweets aimed at @Nunes told him to do everything from “stay strong” to “f*ck off,” essentially.
Chase, who is from roughly the same area of California represented by the congressman, said that he honestly thinks they might be second cousins, but he can’t confirm it. Rather than ignore Twitter until things blew over, Chase dove in.
“I decided to try and fight back the mentions by answering sarcastically, to each and every one,” Chase said. “Now I’m getting so many I’m not sure how to keep up anymore! I know right now that politics and Trump are very polarizing and people are frustrated and are just trying to vent. However, it’s so much, that I feel it was time for some comic relief and to have some fun with it and maybe get a little attention for the content I create with GeekGamer.”
Can't resign….don't worry I'm not colluding to take over Twitter…..yet…#Nunes #NunesVsNunes #TwitterTakeover https://t.co/r1NEfujlgJ
— Chase Nunes (@Nunes) March 29, 2017
I did not collude, or sell my soul, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night!#WellRested #Nunes #NunesVsNunes https://t.co/5BnZokYicK
— Chase Nunes (@Nunes) March 29, 2017
They are finding out that I'm the other Nunes on Twitter. Playing pinball and streaming. Mostly streaming. #Twitch #NunesVsNunes #Nunes https://t.co/BkZYEg3NHx
— Chase Nunes (@Nunes) March 29, 2017
#hugs #NunesVsNunes #Nunes #NothingButLove https://t.co/FxT6oU0GhR
— Chase Nunes (@Nunes) March 29, 2017
Please don't kick me off. We have our Fantasy Baseball draft tomorrow and I have the first pick! #FantasyBaseball #NunesVsNunes #Nunes https://t.co/U8agLAa1rB
— Chase Nunes (@Nunes) March 28, 2017
Because nothing could possibly be uglier than the mix of politics and Twitter, Chase said that the majority of mentions are really negative. But his replies manage to spark a rare reaction from those who populate the social site.
“When I reply and they see that I’m not the ‘true’ Nunes, they apologize and sometimes delete the tweet,” Chase said. “The ones that support me are a nice break and I respond to them, too. I actually respond to most if not all of the mentions at this point.”
These misdirected tweets provide us with so much amusement. Thank you, Chase, for being so gracious & funny
— Parkton (@Parkton21) March 29, 2017
For his part, Rep. Nunes, a congressman since 2003, likes to tweet clips of interviews he’s done on television or radio to his 27,000 followers. He retweets @RealDonaldTrump from time to time; makes mention of items of interest for his California district; and sprinkles the hashtag #FakeNews around.
Video of my interview today on @FoxNewsSunday: https://t.co/2opX1Svt2P
— Devin Nunes (@DevinNunes) March 19, 2017
#FakeNews I was saying the opposite and warning against engaging in witch-hunts. See the exchange at 8:00 mark: https://t.co/zZuy7uPPbG https://t.co/6vqi27ZumD
— Devin Nunes (@DevinNunes) March 2, 2017
Victory dances are premature on CA water crisis. My take: https://t.co/JDI2hdGsbO pic.twitter.com/NlzdjndtNF
— Devin Nunes (@DevinNunes) January 13, 2017
Chase said people are starting to take notice of his mentions and replies. New followers are waiting to see what he’ll write next and some still don’t believe the Seattle broadcast engineer is not the California congressman.
“I got one comment recently that I should move back to California and run for congress in his district,” Chase said. “I started the hashtag #NunesVsNunes.”