Nancy Pelosi’s speech-ripping stunt was petty, but it’s nothing compared with the pettiness of President Trump himself.
The president spent the morning following his State of the Union speech retweeting those who had praised his performance as well as those condemning House Speaker Pelosi.
After Pelosi ripped up the president’s speech from the speaker’s dais, in a viral moment that has been widely condemned by Republicans, Trump retweeted more than 20 tweets criticizing Pelosi, most containing the hashtag #PelosiTantrum. One of the tweets Trump retweeted called Pelosi “classless” and “broken.”
While it’s easy to dunk on the speaker for her lack of decorum, let’s just remember who it was she was protesting.
The irony of his criticism is completely lost on Trump as he blithely rips on Pelosi for her unprofessional behavior. This, coming from the man who routinely calls her nicknames such as “Nervous Nancy” and “Crazy Nancy.” The caustic president has even made cracks about his opponents going to hell.
He also refused to shake Pelosi’s hand before he started his speech. Whether or not he saw her outstretched hand was unclear from the camera angle, but if it wasn’t a full snub, his brief turn toward Pelosi meant he certainly wasn’t going to give her the time of day.
Whether or not you think Trump’s habit of spitting venom is justified, it should be pretty clear that if he can dish it out, he should expect to take it. Those who support Trump can criticize Pelosi for other reasons, but they don’t have much ground to say she lacks class. That just means she fits in with the rest of Washington.
