--- title: Photo of John Kelly During Trump's U.N. Speech Goes Viral description: "We feel your pain," said one commentator canonical: https://time.com/4949263/john-kelly-donald-trump-un-speech/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-09-20T04:46:57.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T09:52:23.391Z og:title: See John Kelly's Reaction to Trump's U.N. Speech og:description: "We feel your pain," said one commentator og:url: https://time.com/4949263/john-kelly-donald-trump-un-speech/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt54f10bd176ce3d40/6988de7f97cdff881a6b281c/ap_17262538364916.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3097 og:image:height: 1742 og:image:alt: John Kelly, Melania Trump og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: See John Kelly's Reaction to Trump's U.N. Speech twitter:description: "We feel your pain," said one commentator twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt54f10bd176ce3d40/6988de7f97cdff881a6b281c/ap_17262538364916.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # See White House Chief of Staff John Kelly's Reaction to Trump's U.N. Speech > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=2eb7ac15-4391-4266-a224-3296bf933cd3&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: President Trump Threatens to 'Totally Destroy' North Korea in U.N. Speech [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump Threatens to 'Totally Destroy' North Korea in U.N. Speech](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/I4DNTm1m.m3u8) (0:36)  _Published 2017-09-19. President Trump threatened North Korea with total destruction in his first speech to the United Nations, but said that the international body could still prevent war_ by [Tierney McAfee / People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Tierney McAfee / People Contributor Sep 20, 2017 4:46 AM UTC President Trump threatened North Korea with total destruction in his first speech to the United Nations, but said that the international body could still prevent war by [Tierney McAfee / People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Tierney McAfee / People Contributor Sep 20, 2017 4:46 AM UTC A photo of [White House Chief of Staff John Kelly](http://time.com/4894987/why-general-john-kelly-trump-last-hope/) reacting to President Donald Trump‘s menacing United Nations address on Tuesday has gone viral. The photo, taken by Mary Altaffer of the Associated Press, shows Trump’s homeland security secretary turned chief of staff holding his face in his hand while listening to his boss, with First Lady Melania Trump seated in front of him. The photo quickly made the rounds on Twitter, where many shared Kelly’s apparent distress over [the president’s first speech at the U.N.](http://time.com/4947877/the-u-n-speech-showed-president-trumps-zero-sum-views/) in which he called North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a “[rocket man](http://time.com/4948559/donald-trump-rocket-man/) on a suicide mission” and threatened to “totally destroy” the East Asian country. “General #JohnKelly’s reaction to #TrumpUNSpeech speaks for us all,” tweeted one critic. “We feel your pain,” added another. > [](https://twitter.com/Anubis8/status/910232351770316800) > [](https://twitter.com/LifeIsSweetBaby/status/910231981782441984) > [](https://twitter.com/MissMyrtle2/status/910216057419268096) > [](https://twitter.com/JhamelResists/status/910214136868589568) > [](https://twitter.com/thefayster1957/status/910214587596894209) > [](https://twitter.com/Kyle%5FFeldscher/status/910200900341387264) > [](https://twitter.com/MadddWWWorld/status/910234765361590272) Trump is facing criticism over what some are calling his “warmongering” speech at the General Assembly, where he warned: “We will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. The United States is ready, willing and able, but hopefully this will not be necessary.” The president’s words were met with stunned silence from United Nations diplomats in the room, according to the official White House press pool report. “The applause for POTUS when he was introduced was muted at best and most in the room listened attentively but stone faced, many of them with earphones providing translation,” the report said. “At the end, there was fuller, polite applause, though not rousing or enthusiastic.” Critics on Twitter certainly made their voices heard, however. > [](https://twitter.com/atomicdog4/status/910238786470027264) > [](https://twitter.com/funder/status/910217811066281984) > [](https://twitter.com/21stcenturyfred/status/910155817135017985) > [](https://twitter.com/Lawrence/status/910171720195170304) > [](https://twitter.com/JZarif/status/910205888677470208) Wrote one Twitter user: “Trump’s ignorant hate speech belongs in medieval times-not the 21st Century UN -unworthy of a reply.” _This_ [_article_](http://people.com/politics/john-kelly-face-palming-trump-un-speech-photo/) _originally appeared on_ [_People.com_](http://people.com)_._ ## Transcript [00:00] The United States has great strength and patience. But [00:04] if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have [00:08] no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. [00:14] Rocketman is on a suicide mission for himself, and [00:18] for his regime. The United States is ready, willing [00:23] and able, but hopefully this will not be necessary. [00:28] It is time for all nations to work together to isolate the [00:31] Kim regime until it ceases its hostile behavior. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4949263/john-kelly-donald-trump-un-speech/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4949263/john-kelly-donald-trump-un-speech/"},"headline":"See White House Chief of Staff John Kelly's Reaction to Trump's U.N. 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