Representative Ted Lieu mocked Republicans who are trying to select who will be the next Speaker of the House by posing with a bag of popcorn.
On Tuesday, when Congress convened the House got to vote on the next Speaker. However, the Republicans who hold a narrow majority were not able to gather enough votes for California Representative Kevin McCarthy to be selected. Several Freedom Caucus members opposed McCarthy’s nomination which has now left an open space as Republicans are trying to select the next Speaker.
Lieu, a California Democrat, joked about the disarray in the GOP by posting on Twitter a photo of himself with popcorn. The caption read, “about to go to the House Floor.” The comparison between the Speakership ordeal and what would be deemed as entertainment was clear, and the tweet quickly went viral. The photo has been viewed over one million times, and so far the post has received 60,000 likes. Lieu was not the only House Democrat to joke about the situation.
Representative Robert Garcia, a newly-elected congressman from California, also tweeted out a version of the “this is fine” meme regarding the chaos in the House. Similarly, Representative Sara Jacobs of California tweeted a meme featuring lyrics from the Broadway musical Hamilton, where in “Cabinet Battle 1” the lyrics read “you don’t have the votes.”
McCarthy failed to win the Speakership after 19 members of his conference voted against him. This marks the first time in a century when the first potential Speaker loses on the first ballot.
About to go to the House Floor. pic.twitter.com/81QVxmbHBb
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) January 3, 2023
