Trump Calling Enrique Pena Nieto

2018Video remix / exploitable videodead

Also known as: Trump Phone Call Fail · Trump NAFTA Phone Call

Trump Calling Enrique Peña Nieto is a 2018 video remix meme stemming from a bungled Oval Office speakerphone call between Trump and Mexico's president, endlessly remixed with TV theme songs, pop tracks, and comedy audio.

Trump Calling Enrique Peña Nieto is a video remix meme based on an awkward moment from August 27, 2018, when U.S. President Donald Trump struggled to connect a speakerphone call with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto during a live Oval Office press event. The roughly one-minute technical failure, broadcast on camera, became instant remix material as people swapped the audio with TV theme songs, pop tracks, and comedy clips.

trump memesmashup video memespolitical satire memesaccidental fame memes

Overview

The meme centers on a live broadcast clip of Trump sitting at the Oval Office desk, attempting to call the Mexican president on speakerphone while reporters watched. He pressed buttons, said "Enrique?" into silence, and waited awkwardly for nearly a minute before a staffer had to come over and fix the connection1. The moment had the energy of a dad trying to work a new phone at Thanksgiving dinner, and people online immediately recognized its comedy potential2.

The original clip was funny on its own, but the remix format took off because Trump's confused button-pressing and the dead silence synced perfectly with all kinds of background music and audio cues4.

On August 27, 2018, Trump held an on-camera press event to announce a preliminary trade deal with Mexico meant to replace NAFTA1. As part of the event, Trump planned to speak with Mexican President Peña Nieto via speakerphone. The call did not go smoothly. Trump looked at the phone and said "I believe the president is on the phone. Enrique?" to complete silence1. He pressed a button on the display, got more silence, and then when sound finally came through on a different phone, he had to wave over a staffer to transfer the call to a phone closer to him1. The whole ordeal lasted about a minute with cameras rolling the entire time2.

TIME described it as "the kind of moment you might expect to see in the hit comedy The Office" and noted it was "oddly relatable" for anyone who has dealt with conference call problems at work2.

Origin & Background

Platform
C-SPAN (broadcast), Twitter (viral spread)
Key People
@McJesse, @bubbaprog, @arlenparsa
Date
2018

On August 27, 2018, Trump held an on-camera press event to announce a preliminary trade deal with Mexico meant to replace NAFTA. As part of the event, Trump planned to speak with Mexican President Peña Nieto via speakerphone. The call did not go smoothly. Trump looked at the phone and said "I believe the president is on the phone. Enrique?" to complete silence. He pressed a button on the display, got more silence, and then when sound finally came through on a different phone, he had to wave over a staffer to transfer the call to a phone closer to him. The whole ordeal lasted about a minute with cameras rolling the entire time.

TIME described it as "the kind of moment you might expect to see in the hit comedy The Office" and noted it was "oddly relatable" for anyone who has dealt with conference call problems at work.

How It Spread

The clip spread across Twitter within hours of the broadcast. Twitter user @McJesse posted a version with audio from The Office spliced in. User @bubbaprog uploaded a cut set to Tom Petty's "The Waiting," leaning into the obvious joke.

The biggest viral hit came from @arlenparsa, who set the footage to the closing credits theme from the HBO comedy Veep. The tweet read: "so just as an experiment I put the president's supremely awkward oval office moment to the @VeepHBO closing credits theme song just now. uhh it works v well." It pulled in more than 19,000 retweets and 59,000 likes within 24 hours.

CNN covered the Veep angle in a segment titled "Trump's awkward call gets 'Veep' treatment". TIME, CNBC, and The Daily Dot also reported on the moment and the online reaction. The Daily Dot followed up the next day with a roundup of tweets about the meme.

A secondary meme also emerged from the same press event. Before the phone call, Trump was photographed sitting with his arms crossed and lips pursed when reporters asked about the recent death of Senator John McCain. People captioned the photo to portray Trump as grumpy or petulant.

How to Use This Meme

The format is straightforward: take the original clip of Trump fumbling with the phone, strip the audio, and replace it with something funny. Popular choices include:

- TV theme songs that match the awkward energy (Veep, The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm) - Songs about waiting or silence (Tom Petty's "The Waiting") - Sound effects or dialogue from comedy shows

The humor typically comes from how well the replacement audio syncs with Trump's confused expressions and button-pressing. The long pause of dead air before the call connects is the key comedic beat to build around.

Fun Facts

The phone call was supposed to be a triumphant moment announcing the new NAFTA replacement deal, but the technical failure completely overshadowed the policy announcement.

TIME noted the moment was "oddly relatable" because virtually everyone has experienced speakerphone failures at work.

The Veep remix worked so well partly because the show's entire premise was about political incompetence in high office.

The arms-crossed photo from the same event spawned its own separate captioning meme.

Frequently Asked Questions

Trump Calling Enrique Pena Nieto

2018Video remix / exploitable videodead

Also known as: Trump Phone Call Fail · Trump NAFTA Phone Call

Trump Calling Enrique Peña Nieto is a 2018 video remix meme stemming from a bungled Oval Office speakerphone call between Trump and Mexico's president, endlessly remixed with TV theme songs, pop tracks, and comedy audio.

Trump Calling Enrique Peña Nieto is a video remix meme based on an awkward moment from August 27, 2018, when U.S. President Donald Trump struggled to connect a speakerphone call with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto during a live Oval Office press event. The roughly one-minute technical failure, broadcast on camera, became instant remix material as people swapped the audio with TV theme songs, pop tracks, and comedy clips.

trump memes mashup video memes political satire memes accidental fame memes

Overview

The meme centers on a live broadcast clip of Trump sitting at the Oval Office desk, attempting to call the Mexican president on speakerphone while reporters watched. He pressed buttons, said "Enrique?" into silence, and waited awkwardly for nearly a minute before a staffer had to come over and fix the connection. The moment had the energy of a dad trying to work a new phone at Thanksgiving dinner, and people online immediately recognized its comedy potential.

The original clip was funny on its own, but the remix format took off because Trump's confused button-pressing and the dead silence synced perfectly with all kinds of background music and audio cues.

On August 27, 2018, Trump held an on-camera press event to announce a preliminary trade deal with Mexico meant to replace NAFTA. As part of the event, Trump planned to speak with Mexican President Peña Nieto via speakerphone. The call did not go smoothly. Trump looked at the phone and said "I believe the president is on the phone. Enrique?" to complete silence. He pressed a button on the display, got more silence, and then when sound finally came through on a different phone, he had to wave over a staffer to transfer the call to a phone closer to him. The whole ordeal lasted about a minute with cameras rolling the entire time.

TIME described it as "the kind of moment you might expect to see in the hit comedy The Office" and noted it was "oddly relatable" for anyone who has dealt with conference call problems at work.

Origin & Background

Platform
C-SPAN (broadcast), Twitter (viral spread)
Key People
@McJesse, @bubbaprog, @arlenparsa
Date
2018

On August 27, 2018, Trump held an on-camera press event to announce a preliminary trade deal with Mexico meant to replace NAFTA. As part of the event, Trump planned to speak with Mexican President Peña Nieto via speakerphone. The call did not go smoothly. Trump looked at the phone and said "I believe the president is on the phone. Enrique?" to complete silence. He pressed a button on the display, got more silence, and then when sound finally came through on a different phone, he had to wave over a staffer to transfer the call to a phone closer to him. The whole ordeal lasted about a minute with cameras rolling the entire time.

TIME described it as "the kind of moment you might expect to see in the hit comedy The Office" and noted it was "oddly relatable" for anyone who has dealt with conference call problems at work.

How It Spread

The clip spread across Twitter within hours of the broadcast. Twitter user @McJesse posted a version with audio from The Office spliced in. User @bubbaprog uploaded a cut set to Tom Petty's "The Waiting," leaning into the obvious joke.

The biggest viral hit came from @arlenparsa, who set the footage to the closing credits theme from the HBO comedy Veep. The tweet read: "so just as an experiment I put the president's supremely awkward oval office moment to the @VeepHBO closing credits theme song just now. uhh it works v well." It pulled in more than 19,000 retweets and 59,000 likes within 24 hours.

CNN covered the Veep angle in a segment titled "Trump's awkward call gets 'Veep' treatment". TIME, CNBC, and The Daily Dot also reported on the moment and the online reaction. The Daily Dot followed up the next day with a roundup of tweets about the meme.

A secondary meme also emerged from the same press event. Before the phone call, Trump was photographed sitting with his arms crossed and lips pursed when reporters asked about the recent death of Senator John McCain. People captioned the photo to portray Trump as grumpy or petulant.

How to Use This Meme

The format is straightforward: take the original clip of Trump fumbling with the phone, strip the audio, and replace it with something funny. Popular choices include:

- TV theme songs that match the awkward energy (Veep, The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm) - Songs about waiting or silence (Tom Petty's "The Waiting") - Sound effects or dialogue from comedy shows

The humor typically comes from how well the replacement audio syncs with Trump's confused expressions and button-pressing. The long pause of dead air before the call connects is the key comedic beat to build around.

Fun Facts

The phone call was supposed to be a triumphant moment announcing the new NAFTA replacement deal, but the technical failure completely overshadowed the policy announcement.

TIME noted the moment was "oddly relatable" because virtually everyone has experienced speakerphone failures at work.

The Veep remix worked so well partly because the show's entire premise was about political incompetence in high office.

The arms-crossed photo from the same event spawned its own separate captioning meme.

Frequently Asked Questions