Cease and Desist Letter from Republican National Committee

A friend of mine that just told one of the T-shirts he sells has resulted in a Cease & Desist Letter from the Republican National Committee.

Here is the image, basically, screw the GOP:

Here is the C&D:

It has been brought to my attention that altahemp.com is marketing a t-shirt featuring a registered trademark of the Republican National Committee ("RNC") without RNC permission; see attached. The RNC owns the trademarks for "GOP" (Federal Trademark Registration Number 2110224) and takes infringements upon its trademarks seriously. Please cease and desist from utilizing the "GOP" trademark or we will be forced to consider a legal remedy.

I trust you understand the need and the right of the RNC to protect ownership over its trademark.

Thank you for your anticipated cooperation and immediate attention to this matter. Please contact me if you have any pertinent questions.

Sincerely,

Troy McCurry Associate Counsel Republican National Committee

I am not a lawyer, but I recall that parody is supposed to trump trademark, particularly where political speech is involved.
(more after flip)

Let me note that I have no business connection to these folks, and you can find the T-shirt in question here, their home page is here, and a list of their products is here.

BTW, please recommend.

So, what do the lawyers think about the use of a trademark for parody?