Hakeem Jeffries’ Meme War with JD Vance Goes Down in Flames

House Speaker Hakeem Jeffries thought he could play President Donald Trump’s game — but he ended up humiliating himself instead.

In the middle of a government shutdown brought about entirely by his own Democratic Party, and especially the obstruction of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Jeffries tried to get clever on social media. The result? A backfire that reminded Americans why Democrats are losing the messaging battle.

Trump’s Team Sets the Stage

Earlier this week, the Trump White House put out a playful AI-generated video. It depicted Schumer bluntly admitting uncomfortable truths about Democrats, while Jeffries appeared with an oversized sombrero — a jab at the left’s open-borders agenda.

Rather than laugh it off, Jeffries decided to “clap back” on Wednesday with a weak attempt at his own meme. On X (formerly Twitter), he posted a clip of Vice President J.D. Vance at a news conference, edited to match a long-running internet meme. The meme typically portrays Vance with a bald head and puffed-up cheeks; Jeffries’ version gave him messy, exaggerated hair instead.

Watch Jeffries’ post here (the altered meme appears around the 20-second mark):

The Problem: Vance Already Owns the Joke

What Jeffries apparently didn’t understand is that Vance doesn’t take offense at the memes — he embraces them.

As Know Your Meme documented, the trend has circulated for a while, and far from being embarrassed, the Vice President has laughed along with the joke.

Back in March, Julio Rosas of TheBlaze reported on X:
“VP Vance has seen many of the memes/edits of his pictures and thinks it’s a funny trend.”

That sense of humor — shrugging off mockery rather than crying foul — is what separates conservatives from fragile Democrats like Jeffries.

Social Media Reaction Turns on Jeffries

Instead of embarrassing Vance, Jeffries only embarrassed himself. Users on X wasted no time pointing it out:

• “I love that you think this is some kind of gotcha,” one replied.

• Others piled on, mocking Jeffries’ weak attempt at humor.

Democrats Are Losing the PR War

At a time when Americans are watching Democrats keep the government shuttered, the party’s leadership can’t seem to stop making themselves look foolish. Instead of projecting strength or leadership, they’re wasting time on meme battles they cannot win.

Once again, Democrats shot themselves in the foot — and the American people are the ones left paying the price.