White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders blasted House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) sour expression at President Trump's State of the Union during an appearance on CNN on Wednesday. "I think that Nancy Pelosi looks like that all the time," Sanders told CNN's Chris Cuomo. "I think she should smile a lot more often. I think the country would be better for it."
Sanders added that Pelosi "seems to kind of embody the bitterness that belongs in the Democrat party right now."
Sanders wasn't the only one who noticed Pelosi's visage. "When Trump said he created 2 million jobs, Pelosi shook her head," observed Politico. "Pelosi shook her head when Trump said America is seeing rising wages again. Pelosi and [Democratic Whip Steny] Hoyer shook their heads a lot during Trump's remarks, looking befuddled for much of the speech."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Pelosi is not the first woman politician to have her smile, or lack thereof, become a point of scrutiny. "An angry or serious man evokes an image of passion and determination, whereas with a woman it is seen as a sign of derangement or loss of control," observed one Atlantic commenter in response to criticism over Hillary Clinton seeming too cheerful at a 2016 presidential debate.
Watch Sanders' comments below. Jeva Lange
-
‘City leaders must recognize its residents as part of its lifeblood’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
10 upcoming albums to stream during the winter chillThe Week Recommends As the calendar turns to 2026, check out some new music from your favorite artists
-
Kristi Noem might not be long for TrumplandIN THE SPOTLIGHT The Homeland Security secretary has been one of the most visible and vocal architects of Trump’s anti-immigration efforts, even as her own star risks fading
-
Senate votes down ACA subsidies, GOP alternativeSpeed Read The Senate rejected the extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, guaranteeing a steep rise in health care costs for millions of Americans
-
Abrego García freed from jail on judge’s orderSpeed Read The wrongfully deported man has been released from an ICE detention center
-
Indiana Senate rejects Trump’s gerrymander pushSpeed Read The proposed gerrymander would have likely flipped the state’s two Democratic-held US House seats
-
Democrat files to impeach RFK Jr.Speed Read Rep. Haley Stevens filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
-
$1M ‘Trump Gold Card’ goes live amid travel rule furorSpeed Read The new gold card visa offers an expedited path to citizenship in exchange for $1 million
-
US seizes oil tanker off VenezuelaSpeed Read The seizure was a significant escalation in the pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro
-
Judge orders release of Ghislaine Maxwell recordsSpeed Read The grand jury records from the 2019 prosecution of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be made public
-
Miami elects first Democratic mayor in 28 yearsSpeed Read Eileen Higgins, Miami’s first woman mayor, focused on affordability and Trump’s immigration crackdown in her campaign
