Trump’s 6-Page ‘Tantrum’ To Nancy Pelosi Gets Torn Apart On Twitter
On the eve of the House vote to impeach him, President Donald Trump set Twitter alight with a rambling, six-page letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in which he claimed he was afforded less due process than the victims of the Salem witch trials.
In a written tirade peppered with insults and falsehoods, the president accused the House speaker of pursuing impeachment out of pure spite, of displaying “unfettered contempt” for America’s founding fathers, and of offending Americans of faith by saying that she prays for Trump.
He dismissed the two articles of impeachment approved by the House Judiciary Committee last week ― obstruction of Congress and abuse of power ― as baseless.
Multiple references in the letter made it into Twitter’s top trending topics, including “Salem Witch Trials,” “Pelosi,” “Impeachment Eve” and “#TrumpLetter.”
Some Twitter users, including Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), said the letter would be best characterized as a tantrum.
Finally read the Trump letter to Pelosi, and am reminded of her comment in January, "I'm a mother of five, grandmother of nine. I know a temper tantrum when I see one."
— Susan Glasser (@sbg1) December 17, 2019
“It’s a tantrum.” - @RepSwalwell on President Trump’s letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
“Mr. President we don’t need your childish, whiny letter. Don’t send us that. Send us the documents that you have buried and have refused to provide to us.” https://t.co/oi2J2AcJyx pic.twitter.com/u3YlMIVODI— The Situation Room (@CNNSitRoom) December 17, 2019
I wrote a letter to my parents once that was eerily similar in style and tone to what the president just sent to Pelosi.
My parents said it didn’t change the fact that I wasn’t getting ice cream until I ate all of my broccoli.— Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) December 17, 2019
The “Salem witch trials” claim really struck a chord with critics.
When an accused person didn’t enter a plea during the Salem Witch Trials, stones would be piled on their chest for several days until they died.
So if by due process Trump means being tortured until you confess or die of suffocation, then sure. These things are the same. 🤷♀️ https://t.co/DBBkOPEdKt— Kaz Weida (@kazweida) December 17, 2019
In addition to being a horrific example of extremely violent misogyny, the Salem Witch Trials are also notable in that a *LOT* of religious and legal experts spoke out against the neglect of logic and evidence-based argument in the trials.
And they were ignored.
Sound familiar?— Charlotte Clymer🏳️🌈 (@cmclymer) December 17, 2019
Trump Speaks On:
The Central Park 5: Kill those black and Latino kids.
President Obama: His birth certificate is a fraud.
Hillary Clinton: Lock her up!
Police suspects: Rough 'em up.
Impeachment: Why are you so mean to me? This is worse than the Salem Witch Trials.— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) December 17, 2019
If Trump floats in water he should be removed from office.
There. Now his trial is as fair as the Salem Witch Trials.— Liddle’ Savage (@littledeekay) December 17, 2019
Some felt that the language and style of the letter was, in itself, worth noting.
Words & phrases in Trump's letter to Pelosi:
assault
cheapened
cheated
colossal
crippling
derangement
destruction
disgrace
dust
grave
malicious
"motherf****r"
NOTHING!
perversion
Salem Witch Trials
"son of a bitch"
ranting
raving
shameless
slanderous
spiteful
suffering
torment— Dan Zak (@MrDanZak) December 17, 2019
I'm glad the letter from Trump to Pelosi was written.
It will be a great reminder to future historians and students how nuts this President was.— St. Nick Jack Pappas (@Pappiness) December 17, 2019
What strikes me as unusual about Trump's letter to Pelosi is that he uses two spaces after each period.
— Julia Ioffe (@juliaioffe) December 17, 2019
Several Twitter users questioned the president’s legal strategy.
Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.
Usually, it's not a good idea to hand over a memo with your entire legal defense strategy to the prosecution, but Trump does things differently.#ImpeachmentEvehttps://t.co/GoNoOZKbDY
— Grant Stern (@grantstern) December 17, 2019
If you ever wondered why Trump's team doesn't want him to testify under oath, just read this letter. https://t.co/h1ywwEbmVm
— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) December 17, 2019
A few final takes:
Having read the 6 pages of the #trumpletter, it's rather remarkable and telling that no one in the regime stopped him from sending this rambling, lie and conspiracy theory-laden rant. Just goes to show, like a dictator already, no one is telling this crazy man, "no."
— Amy Siskind 🏳️🌈 (@Amy_Siskind) December 17, 2019
How exactly did that Oval Office convo go down?
"He's written a letter."
-To whom?
Nancy.
-Is it coherent?
He wrote it in green crayon.
-Does it implicate him?
Pretty much.
-Does he sound batshit crazy/deranged?
Totally.
-Okay, send it.#ImpeachmentEve #trumpletter— Mike Larsen for Congress (@MikeLarsenOH) December 17, 2019
Me irl after taking a break from news and politics for a few days, only to return and see Trump’s letter to Pelosi pic.twitter.com/Jv8AmJkSrp
— Ryan Gorman (@ryanegorman) December 18, 2019
DEAR DEMS:
The #TrumpLetter isn't for you.
It's for his MAGA voters.
They speak his language.
He speaks theirs.
It's a language spread by rightwing media.
Until you get that, nothing will change.— Peter Daou (@peterdaou) December 17, 2019
Related Coverage
Mitch McConnell Says No New Impeachment Witnesses For Trump's Trial
Trump Bashes House Impeachment Effort In Bonkers Letter To Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi's Daughter Hilariously Mocks Trump's Ranting Letter To Mom
This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
