Patent and Trademark officials in Washington, DC have rejected a Florida man's bid to trademark the term "Obama bin Laden," ruling that the conflation of the names of a U.S. Senator and the world's leading terrorist was "scandalous" and wrongly suggested a connection between the politician and the mass murderer.
Last month, Alexandre Batlle, a 28-year-old Miami resident, filed an application to trademark the term for use on hats, shirts, pins, and bumper stickers. Citing regulations dealing with "false association," PTO noted that the application was also refused because it did not include "the written consent of Barack Obama and Osama bin Laden, the names of the living individuals identified."
Batlle, who paid $325 to file his application, does not plan to appeal the decision, since he only wanted to use "Obama bin Laden" to "make a quick buck." Batlle, who described him-self as "more of a Democrat my-self," planned to sell t-shirts through obamabinladen.net, which he registered on January 19, the same day he filed his trademark application.
The application was accompanied with the proposed artwork for one shirt, which features Obama carrying an assault rifle and wearing a turban. Obama is accompanied by Hillary Clinton, who appears to be leashed and wearing a modified burqa.
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