--- title: Nancy Pelosi Clapping at the 2019 State of the Union Memes description: Nancy Pelosi clapping at President Donald Trump the 2019 State of the Union quickly becomes a meme. canonical: https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/ author: Ashley Hoffman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-02-06T03:56:55.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-13T08:21:51.494Z og:title: Memers Applauded Pelosi's Clapping Moment at the SOTU og:description: "Mom liking every Facebook post" og:url: https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5ad4c10ac5b41d6a/698944a097cdff23c66b7498/nancy-pelosi-donald-trump-clap-state-of-the-union.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3040 og:image:height: 1710 og:image:alt: President Donald Trump delivered the State of the Union address, with Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, at the Capitol in Washington og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Memers Applauded Pelosi's Clapping Moment at the SOTU twitter:description: "Mom liking every Facebook post" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5ad4c10ac5b41d6a/698944a097cdff23c66b7498/nancy-pelosi-donald-trump-clap-state-of-the-union.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 00:51 video:published: 2019-02-06 section: politics topics: political cooperation, compromise, common good, political stalemate, bipartisanship, rejecting retribution, healing divisions, America's future, applause genre: speech, news clip tones: unifying, hopeful, earnest, aspirational emotions: hope (high), determination (medium), approval (medium) sentiment: positive audience: political news viewers, general news audience, American voters, students of politics content_suitability: politics [00:00-00:51] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # Meme Makers Applauded Pelosi's Clapping Moment at the State of the Union > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=d0402213-ecef-4003-9337-f95497bff10f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Nancy Pelosi's Clapping Moment At The State of the Union Has Gone Viral [Watch (HLS stream): Nancy Pelosi's Clapping Moment At The State of the Union Has Gone Viral](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rUt1Ic5O.m3u8) (0:51)  _Published 2019-02-06. Nancy Pelosi's Clapping Moment At The State of the Union Has Gone Viral_ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary The video presents a speaker's call to reject the politics of revenge, resistance, and retribution. The speaker urges embracing cooperation, compromise, and the common good instead. Applause is heard twice during the remarks. The speaker closes by saying that together, divisions can be bridged and old wounds healed, and that new solutions can be forged. ## Key points - The speaker says the politics of revenge, resistance, and retribution must be rejected. (00:00) - The speaker calls for embracing the boundless potential of cooperation, compromise, and the common good. (00:05) - Applause follows the call to embrace cooperation, compromise, and the common good. (00:14) - The speaker claims that together, decades of political stalemate can be broken. (00:32) - The speaker says all divisions can be bridged and old wounds healed. (00:37) - The speaker says new correlations and new solutions can be forged. (00:42) - The speaker says this effort can unlock the extraordinary promise of America's future. (00:47) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:32] Rejecting revenge for cooperation. The speaker urges rejecting the politics of revenge, resistance, and retribution in favor of cooperation, compromise, and the common good, followed by applause. - [00:32 to 00:51] Breaking stalemate and unlocking America's promise. The speaker says that together political stalemate can be broken, divisions bridged, and the promise of America's future unlocked. ## Key quotes - [00:00] speaker: "But we must reject the politics of revenge," - [00:05] speaker: "resistance, and retribution, and embrace the boundless" - [00:32] speaker: "Together we can break decades of political stalemate." - [00:37] speaker: "We can bridge all divisions. Heal old wounds," - [00:47] speaker: "and unlock the extraordinary promise of America's future." ## Questions this video answers - What does the speaker say must be rejected? [00:00] - What does the speaker urge embracing instead? [00:05] - What does the speaker say can be achieved together? [00:32] - What does the speaker say can be done about divisions and old wounds? [00:37] - What does the speaker say can be unlocked for America's future? [00:47] ## Content suitability - politics [00:00-00:51]: Political speech calling for cooperation and compromise and rejecting revenge, resistance, and retribution. by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Feb 6, 2019 3:56 AM UTC Nancy Pelosi's Clapping Moment At The State of the Union Has Gone Viral by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Feb 6, 2019 3:56 AM UTC After he applauded at his own State of the Union address in 2018, Donald Trump [went viral](http://time.com/5126189/donald-trump-state-union-clapping/). This year, it was his archrival, Speaker [Nancy Pelosi](http://time.com/5388347/nancy-pelosi-democrats-feminism/), who got all the applause online. For Americans watching along at home, the moment was so brief you might miss it. But a a New York _Times_ photographer Doug Mills captured a photo of Trump appearing to turn back to face Pelosi as she clapped with outstretched arms. > [](https://twitter.com/stan%5Felites/status/1092997515467579392) As always in the grand tradition of memes, the people see what they want to see, with Trump critics coming to the immediate conclusion that she was trolling the president. Viewers got right down to captioning with the snapshot with takes ranging from pointed to silly. See below for various takes on the [Nancy Pelosi SOTU meme](http://time.com/5522266/donald-trump-no-pelosi-introduction-state-of-the-union/). > [](https://twitter.com/oureric/status/1092981924715470850) > [](https://twitter.com/AsteadWesley/status/1092985204837441543) > [](https://twitter.com/colincampbell/status/1092981451266641920) > [](https://twitter.com/courtneyabree/status/1092989926482812928) > [](https://twitter.com/RedHeeledChick/status/1092970241355857920) > [](https://twitter.com/peter%5Fj%5Fdoherty/status/1092970384981282816) > [](https://twitter.com/sarahjean3/status/1092989265703829505) > [](https://twitter.com/leahmcelrath/status/1092985628067803141) > [](https://twitter.com/malikwrightnyc/status/1092970564333953025) > [](https://twitter.com/AnnCSloan/status/1092970637046439936) > [](https://twitter.com/theferocity/status/1092989722178265088) > [](https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1093132243390906368) **Another joke? The Nancy Pelosi papers moment that hat had people wondering “**[**what is Nancy Pelosi reading**](http://time.com/5520502/2019-state-of-the-union-address-tie/)**?”** > [](https://twitter.com/EpiphanyTC/status/1092973140815372293) > [](https://twitter.com/jimgeraghty/status/1092970302236049408) > [](https://twitter.com/StevenTDennis/status/1092970287392481280) > [](https://twitter.com/SteveVaughn/status/1092973263624552449) > [](https://twitter.com/itsmebeccam/status/1092984158937219072) > [](https://twitter.com/desusnice/status/1092987689828265984) > [](https://twitter.com/Amy%5FSiskind/status/1092998916201697281) > [](https://twitter.com/alley%5Fhart/status/1092984850699694080) Someone compared the Nancy Pelosi photo of the clapback to Lucille Bluth of _Arrested Development_. > [](https://twitter.com/spicykezzinnugg/status/1092986834949496833) Besting them all, of course 2019 Super Bowl Maroon 5 halftime show singer Adam Levine was invoked > [](https://twitter.com/parkermolloy/status/1092992249745629184) Not everyone was into her clapping style. Criticism of clapping follows in the grand tradition of Nicole Kidman clapping memes. > [](https://twitter.com/RyanKirkley/status/1092987979025518593) > [](https://twitter.com/IngrahamAngle/status/1093002714135625728) This isn’t the first time she got this kind of treatment. When she emerged from the White House wearing a burnt orange, high neck peacoat and a pair of sunglasses and it resonated. Fans of the internet-crowned “[power move](http://time.com/5477993/nancy-pelosi-sunglasses-meme/)” assembled behind Pelosi’s exit, which called to mind a certain vibe of as the 2016 viral photo of a Hillary Clinton checking her phone on a plane while wearing shades, captured by TIME’s White House photographers. But she has also gotten her share of Twitter jabs at her expense. When Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer took to a single podium to deliver their rebuttal following Trump’s Oval Office address last month, Twitter immediately moved in with a harsh meme offensive [joking about them awkwardly sharing one podium](http://time.com/5497640/nancy-pelosi-chuck-schumer-split-podium). > [](https://twitter.com/ezraklein/status/1082823117787979777) > [](https://twitter.com/BillKristol/status/1082824616001835009) > [](https://twitter.com/waynejung/status/1082826873124589568) Another take? The pair looked like two stern, disappointed parents. > [](https://twitter.com/AaronFlux/status/1082824246999437312) > [](https://twitter.com/erinscafe/status/1082825458490593282) > [](https://twitter.com/MattBinder/status/1082824274543554566) ## Transcript [00:00] But we must reject the politics of revenge, [00:05] resistance, and retribution, and embrace the boundless [00:09] potential of cooperation, compromise, and [00:14] the common good. [ APPLAUSE ] [00:23] [ APPLAUSE ] [00:32] Together we can break decades of political stalemate. [00:37] We can bridge all divisions. Heal old wounds, [00:42] build new correlations, forge new solutions [00:47] and unlock the extraordinary promise of America's future. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/"},"headline":"Meme Makers Applauded Pelosi's Clapping Moment at the State of the Union","datePublished":"2019-02-06T03:56:55.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-13T08:21:51.494Z","description":"Nancy Pelosi clapping at President Donald Trump the 2019 State of the Union quickly becomes a meme.","url":"https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/","keywords":["Newsfeed","politics","state of the union","nancy pelosi","Donald Trump","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5ad4c10ac5b41d6a/698944a097cdff23c66b7498/nancy-pelosi-donald-trump-clap-state-of-the-union.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ashley Hoffman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5ad4c10ac5b41d6a/698944a097cdff23c66b7498/nancy-pelosi-donald-trump-clap-state-of-the-union.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"President Donald Trump delivered the State of the Union address, with Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, at the Capitol in Washington","caption":"President Donald Trump delivered the State of the Union address, with Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, at the Capitol in Washington","creditText":"Doug Mills—The New York Times/Pool/Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/","name":"Meme Makers Applauded Pelosi's Clapping Moment at the State of the Union"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Nancy Pelosi's Clapping Moment At The State of the Union Has Gone Viral","description":"Nancy Pelosi's Clapping Moment At The State of the Union Has Gone Viral","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/rUt1Ic5O/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2019-02-06T05:31:29.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rUt1Ic5O.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/","duration":"PT51S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5522328/state-union-pelosi-clap-meme/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```