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People already have plenty to say about President Trump's first State of the Union, but sometimes a facial expression conveys just enough. Some of the most noticed reactions came from none other than Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. During Trump's State of the Union address, the California Democrat's face made her disdain loud and clear.
The cameras managed to catch the representative's priceless facial expression as Trump spoke during the joint session of Congress. And of course, Twitter users were quick to make screenshots — Pelosi's version of the "not impressed" scowl became instant meme gold.
Pelosi's reaction came when President Trump claimed lower unemployment rates for blacks and Hispanics:
Since the election, we have created 2.4 million new jobs ... including 200,000 new jobs in manufacturing alone. Tremendous numbers. After years and years of wage stagnation, we are finally seeing rising wages.
Unemployment claims have hit a 45-year low. It's something I'm very proud of. African American unemployment stands at the lowest rate ever recorded. And Hispanic American unemployment has also reached the lowest levels in history.
The black unemployment rate is indeed at a record low, and Hispanic unemployment rate at a near-record low — however, this downward trend started years before Trump took office, as NPR reported, based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Perhaps Pelosi's less-than-impressed reaction was about Trump taking credit for the U.S. economy. Or perhaps, like Jay-Z, she agrees that the black unemployment rate doesn't erase his policies that affect the black community.
Either way, Pelosi was not having it. Here are some of the responses to Pelosi's face at Trump's State of the Union:
Nancy Pelosi Is Not Impressed
Pelosi brought this meme back to life with her unimpressed facial expression.
The Face That Launched A Thousand Comments
Pelosi already had low expectations going into Trump's State of the Union address.
"If his nose isn't running and he isn't burping, he did a great speech," Pelosi reportedly said at the weekly private meeting for the House Democratic Caucus on Tuesday morning.
Why So Salty?
She also reportedly told Democrats to not disrupt "slobbering" Trump during the State of the Union.
"If you want to walk out, don't come in," Pelosi told Democrats during the closed-door caucus meeting.
Pelosi The Church Mom
Some recognized her face from experience — although the lawmaker couldn't keep her annoyance off her face, she did remain unobtrusive during Trump's speech.
Heckling and shouts of disapproval during the State of the Union isn't unheard of. Trump got booed when he said he wanted to end "chain migration," while South Carolina Republican Rep. Joe Wilson shouted "You lie!" during Obama's 2010 speech.
Usually, however, members of Congress are more limit their expressions of disapproval to murmuring, shaking their heads, and like Pelosi, pulling faces.
A Wrongful Assumption
Pelosi did express her reaction to Trump's State of the Union in more detail on Twitter; Trump supporters also fired back.
...And She's Outta There
Many imagined that Pelosi couldn't wait to get out of that State of the Union meeting.
While she may have stayed quiet during the actual speech, Pelosi did sound off her opinions on Twitter. She said it was "wonderful" to hear Trump wants to fight opioid addiction and that Trump should start by requesting Congress to fund that fight. But that seemed to be the only wonderful thing she found about Trump's State of the Union address.
Pelosi claimed American wages grew 10 times more slowly than the stock market in 2017. She described the GOP tax scheme as a "scam" that would be great news for Trump's CEO friends, but bad news for the middle class.
In response to Trump saying he wanted to lower the cost of prescription drugs, she accused Trump of hypocritically trying to sabotage the Affordable Care Act. She called out Trump for "overstat[ing]" the progress made in veterans' care. She also criticized Trump's comment on ending "chain migration" and said keeping families together should be the priority.
We'll be sure to hear more from Pelosi during the Trump presidency.
