Vice President JD Vance gave his word on Wednesday that memes mocking House and Senate Minority Leaders Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) would stop if Jeffries would help end the ongoing government shutdown.
Vance stepped into the White House briefing room to address the press corps and offered his “solemn promise” to put an end to the memes, provided Jeffries helped steer his party toward a compromise.
WATCH:
???? LMFAO! JD Vance just responded to Hakeem Jeffries being offended by Trump’s memes
“I will tell Hakeem Jeffries right now, I make a solemn promise to you, that if you help us reopen the government, the sombrero memes WILL stop!”
“I’ve talked to the President about that.” ???? pic.twitter.com/DkJy5t5ooe
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) October 1, 2025
Vance explained that the memes — which showed Jeffries with a fake mustache and sombrero and Schumer complaining about the Democratic Party — were made in an effort to “poke fun at the absurdity” of some of the demands being made by Democrats with regard to any agreement to fund the government going forward.
“I will tell Hakeem Jeffries right now, I make a solemn promise to you, that if you help us reopen the government, the sombrero memes will stop!” Vance added, prompting laughter around the briefing room. “And I’ve talked to the President of the United States about that.”
Vance went on to say that, in all seriousness, if there were any Senate Democrats who wanted to negotiate a deal to reopen the government, he would be glad to take part.
The memes began with one video posted to President Trump’s account on X and Truth Social:
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 30, 2025
When Jeffries responded by complaining about the “racist” nature of the meme. “The next time you have something to say about me, don’t cop out through a racist and fake AI video! When I’m back in the Oval Office, say it to my face!” he demanded.
Hakeem Jeffries is very upset about Trump’s video depicting him with a mustache and a sombrero: “The next time you have something to say about me, don’t cop out through a racist and fake AI video! When I’m back in the Oval Office, say it to my face!”
????pic.twitter.com/aYwRrWtM9z
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) September 30, 2025
Jeffries continued to complain about the meme during an appearance on MSNBC with host Lawrence O’Donnell, and Trump responded with a meme made from a clip of that interview.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2025