Late-night host Jimmy Fallon mocked President Trump Wednesday for a photo showing two empty chairs after House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) pulled out of a meeting at the White House.
“Trump left two seats empty at the White House to symbolize Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi skipping their meeting,” Fallon said on “The Tonight Show.”
“But it backfired when those empty seats reminded him of his inauguration.”
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Pelosi and Schumer backed out of a meeting Tuesday after Trump tweeted earlier in the day he didn’t think it was likely a deal could be reached with Democrats to avoid a government shutdown.
“Meeting with ‘Chuck and Nancy’ today about keeping government open and working,” Trump tweeted earlier Tuesday. “Problem is they want illegal immigrants flooding into our Country unchecked, are weak on Crime and want to substantially RAISE Taxes. I don’t see a deal!”
Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) attended the meeting, separated from the president by one empty chair each to indicate the Democrats’ absence.
Pelosi blasted Trump for the photo, saying he was “more interested in stunts that in addressing the needs of the American people.”
“.@realDonaldTrump now knows that his verbal abuse will no longer be tolerated,” Pelosi tweeted.
“His empty chair photo opp showed he’s more interested in stunts than in addressing the needs of the American people. Poor Ryan and McConnell relegated to props. Sad!”
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, meanwhile, accused the Democrats of “pettiness” and “political grandstanding.”
“The president’s invitation to the Democrat leaders still stands and he encourages them to put aside their pettiness, stop the political grandstanding, show up and get to work,” she said in a statement after the two lawmakers announced they were backing out of the meeting. “These issues are too important.”