--- title: Nancy Pelosi Rips Up Trump's State of the Union Speech description: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tore a copy of President Donald Trump's State of the Union speech in half as he wrapped up his address. canonical: https://time.com/5778099/pelosi-trump-speech-rip/ author: Sanya Mansoor article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-02-05T04:08:36.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-12T19:40:54.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Nancy Pelosi Ripped Up a Copy of Trump's State of the Union Address og:description: The White House accused Pelosi of disrespecting the Americans Trump praised og:url: https://time.com/5778099/pelosi-trump-speech-rip/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4bf0956438a724b9/698a09cd929fad3a62bf5a76/pelosi-tear.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Nancy Pelosi og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Nancy Pelosi Ripped Up a Copy of Trump's State of the Union Address twitter:description: The White House accused Pelosi of disrespecting the Americans Trump praised twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4bf0956438a724b9/698a09cd929fad3a62bf5a76/pelosi-tear.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Nancy Pelosi Ripped Up a Copy of Trump's State of the Union Address > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times 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. ## Video: Nancy Pelosi Calls Trump’s State of the Union Address “A Manifesto of Mistruths” [Watch (HLS stream): Nancy Pelosi Calls Trump’s State of the Union Address “A Manifesto of Mistruths”](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/oIF4v9Ks.m3u8) (0:28)  _Published 2020-02-05. As President Donald Trump finished his State of the Union Address on Tuesday night, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was seen ripping up a copy of the President’s speech._  by [Sanya Mansoor](https://time.com/author/sanya-mansoor/)  ## Sanya Mansoor Updated: Dec 12, 2023 7:40 PM UTCPublished: Feb 5, 2020 4:08 AM UTC  US Vice President Mike Pence claps as Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi appears to rip a copy of US President Donald Trumps speech after he delivers the State of the Union address at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on February 4, 2020. US Vice President Mike Pence claps as Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi appears to rip a copy of US President Donald Trumps speech after he delivers the State of the Union address at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on February 4, 2020. Mandel Ngan—AFP/Getty Images  by [Sanya Mansoor](https://time.com/author/sanya-mansoor/)  ## Sanya Mansoor Updated: Dec 12, 2023 7:40 PM UTCPublished: Feb 5, 2020 4:08 AM UTC As President Donald Trump finished his State of the Union Address on Tuesday night, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was seen ripping up a copy of the President’s speech. > [](https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1224897851303628801) Asked immediately after Trump’s speech why she tore up the transcript, Pelosi told reporters: “Because it was the courteous thing to do,” adding that it was “the courteous thing to do considering the alternative.” It isn’t clear what she meant by an “alternative.” > [](https://twitter.com/frankthorp/status/1224900230442815489) > [](https://twitter.com/marykbruce/status/1224900781771513856) Pelosi later called Trump’s speech a “manifesto of mistruths.” The White House responded quickly, accusing Pelosi of disrespecting the Americans that Trump had praised during his State of the Union address. > [](https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/1224902083209502721) Pelosi and Trump have long had an awkward relationship; tensions only rose after Pelosi came to embrace the idea of impeaching Trump. Earlier in the evening, Trump appeared to [dodge an attempted handshake](https://time.com/5777999/nancy-pelosi-handshake-trump/) from the House Speaker. At the end of last year’s State of the Union, [Pelosi’s clap](https://time.com/5523474/nancy-pelosi-thinking-clapback/) and pursed lips led to widespread speculation about whether her applause was sarcastic. 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