There’s been no shortage of offensive rhetoric during this election, and a Nashville gas station appears delighted to add fuel to the fire.
A sign outside the Shell gas station, located in Tennessee’s Davidson County, read “Trump Just Said It. Bill Clinton Did It! The Only P*$$y Trump Ever Grabbed Was Paul Ryan! #TrumpThatB*tch.”
The sign refers to a 2005 audio recording in which the Republican presidential nominee makes lewd and uncensored comments about women, including boasting he can “grab them by the pussy.”
Bradford Lewis, the owner of the gas station and the adjoined Lewis Country Store, told WTVF in June that he does this to have “fun” with the signs.
“I own the store, and the last time I checked we still have freedom of speech in the good ‘ole U.S. of A,” Lewis told WTVF.
The sign displayed at the time read “#Trump that B****” and “Never Forget Benghazi.” A month before that, the sign read “Closed on Sundays to prep for the Crusade” and “Seven years of Obama and we can’t figure out which restroom to use,” according to WSMV.
A woman who answered the phone at Lewis Country Store on Friday declined to comment on the latest sign.
A video of the sign on the store’s Facebook page has garnered over 200,000 views and sparked a series of rebukes, to which the Lewis County Store responded harshly and without censorship.
“Sad people! Good luck staying open long,” Christopher Ball-Crum wrote underneath the video.
“Omg I thought your name was ball-cum for a second there,” Lewis Country Store replied.
Shell Oil Company has released a statement on Lewis’ colorful use of his sign in the past. “We do have brand guidelines in our licensing agreement that all independent sites must adhere to,” a company spokeswoman told WTVF. “When there are violations, we ask for the issue to be addressed. Continued violations could result in more aggressive action including potential de-branding.”
Shell told the Nashville Scene that the company was aware of the offensive sign. “The content of the message does not reflect the views or opinions of Shell and we are following up with this independently owned location to investigate further,” the spokeswoman told the outlet.
The company could not immediately be reached for comment.
This piece has been updated with a fuller version of Shell’s statement to media.
Before You Go
