Mike Pompeo tried to mock Nancy Pelosi's State of the Union response with a 'Simpsons' meme, but it doesn't mean what he thinks

Lauren Frias

Feb 5, 2020, 12:59 IST

Mike Pompeo tried to mock Nancy Pelosi's State of the Union response with a 'Simpsons' meme, but it doesn't mean what he thinks

Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi rips up the speech of US President Donald Trump after his State of the Union address.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tried to mock House Speaker Nancy Pelosi by comparing her to Lisa Simpson from "The Simpsons."
Pelosi ripped up the transcript of President Donald Trump's State of the Union address, which came just a day before the Senate will vote to convict or acquit the president on two articles of impeachment.
"The Simpsons" meme that Pompeo tweeted is Lisa crying and ripping up her speech on democracy after witnessing a politician accepting a bribe.
After being disheartened by the blatant disrespect for democracy, Lisa gave an impassioned speech to her school, calling Washington a "swamp" that has the "fetid stench of corruption that hangs in the air."
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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo took a swipe at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's State of the Union address response with a "Simpsons" meme, but he may not have known the context behind the meme.

President Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address Tuesday night just a day before Congress votes whether to convict or acquit him on two articles of impeachment - one for abuse of power and one for obstruction of Congress.

In December, Trump was impeached largely along party lines by the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives led by Pelosi, for allegedly withholding aid to Ukraine as a way to pressure Ukraine into investigating a political opponent - former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter. Trump has maintained he has done nothing wrong.

The president and the House Speaker had not spoken since a meeting in October. The tension between the two during Trump's speech initially appeared as Trump snubbed an attempted handshake from Pelosi, and the House Speaker responded to Trump's address by tearing up the transcript, much to the ire of the GOP.

Pompeo responded to Pelosi's action with an image of Lisa from "The Simpsons" crying while ripping up a piece of paper.

The meme originated from a 1991 episode of "The Simpsons" where Lisa takes a trip to Washington to learn about the meaning of democracy. The meme captures Lisa when she's upset after seeing a politician accepting a bribe. She rips up sheets of paper, which turn out to be her essay titled "The Roots of Democracy."

Pompeo unwittingly referenced the scene with his tweet of "The Simpsons" meme.

Lisa goes on to give a revised speech to her school on her recent visit to Washington, DC, referring to Washington with Trump's favored name for the district - a "swamp."

"The city of Washington was built on a stagnant swamp some 200 years ago, and very little has changed," she said. "It stank then and it stinks now; only today it is the fetid stench of corruption that hangs in the air."