Donald Trump Jr. Likens Syrian Refugees to Skittles That ‘Would Kill You’

US-VOTE-REPUBLICANS-CONVENTION
Donald Trump, Jr., son of Donald Trump, speaks on the second day of the Republican National Convention at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland on July 19, 2016. The Republican Party formally nominated Donald Trump for president of the United States Tuesday, capping a roller-coaster campaign that saw the billionaire tycoon defeat 16 White House rivals. / AFP / JIM WATSON (Photo credit should read JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)
JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images

Whether he meant to or not, Donald Trump Jr. set off a firestorm on Twitter Monday night after comparing Syrian refugees to Skittles, blasting out a picture he declared “says it all.”

“If I had a bowl of skittles and I told you just three would kill you. Would you take a handful?” the statement read. “That’s our Syrian refugee problem.”

Trump sent out the graphic with his father’s presidential campaign’s official logo and the hashtag “#trump2016,” urging an “end” to “the politically correct agenda that doesn’t put America first.”

The term “Skittles” quickly made its way to Twitter’s trending topics and even prompted a speedy response from Mars, which owns Skittles maker Wrigley.

Mars issued a statement online, saying, “Skittles are candy; refugees are people. It’s an inappropriate analogy.”

“We will respectfully refrain from further commentary as anything we say could be misinterpreted as marketing,” said the company.

See also: Twitter Is Finally Loosening Its 140-Character Limit

The Twitterverse, of course, was quick to add commentary of its own, with many blasting Trump and others expressing agreement with his views.

https://twitter.com/jonfavs/status/778036417167368192

https://twitter.com/willbardwell/status/778046440887255040

https://twitter.com/ItalyGG/status/778148930458615808

https://twitter.com/JackT94/status/778148806315606017

For more on the 2016 race, watch Fortune’s video:

For anyone scratching their heads at how Trump came up with the comparison, Joe Walsh, a former Republican state representative for Illinois (who also made headlines this summer for appearing to call for “war” against President Obama), later took ownership of the idea, The Guardian noted.