Covfefe

 Donald J. Trump Twitter
@realDonaldTrump

Despite the constant negative press covfefe

May 30, 2017

Covfefe is a word presumably misspelled by President of the US Donald Trump in a viral internet meme. It was sent in a tweet 9.06 PM - 30 May 2017 that said "Despite the constant negative press covfefe." It was widely suggested by the media that Donald Trump meant to write "coverage." However, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said that it was not a misspelling, with him saying "I think the president and a small group of people know exactly what he meant."

Influence

Protester holding a 'Truth not "Covfefe"' sign.
A protester holding a 'Truth not "Covfefe"' sign.

The tweet would remain used in internet culture and by the media for much time afterwards. When writing for The Atlantic, journalist Adrienne LaFrance said that "Covfefe remains the tweet that best illustrates Trump's most preternatural gift: He knows how to captivate people, how to command, and divert the attention of the masses." This media story suggested that Donald Trump was very good at getting attention and fascinating people.

In language

The Urban Dictionary would soon add a page on "covfefe", with the page saying that: "It literally means covfefe."

Dictionary.com would also say that "covfefe" was at the top of their list of 'unmatched queries' in October 2017 and would continue to have the largest amount of user searches for words without a page.

In law

U.S. Representative Mike Quigley started H.R.2884, "The Communications Over Various Feeds Electronically for Engagement Act (COVFEFE Act)" on June 12, 2017. The act suggested that national archives should need to store social media posts by the President of the United States. The bill went to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on the same day but saw no further congressional action. Despite this, Donald Trump's tweets and other posts were stored as said in the Presidential and Federal Records Act Amendments of 2014.

References

  1. ↑ Donald J. Trump [@realDonaldTrump] (May 30, 2017). "Despite the constant negative press covfefe" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 31, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2021 – via Twitter.
  2. ↑ Matt Flegenheimer (May 31, 2017). "What's a 'Covfefe'? Trump Tweet Unites a Bewildered Nation". The New York Times. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  3. ↑ Estepa, Jessica (May 31, 2017). "Sean Spicer says 'covfefe' wasn't a typo: Trump knew 'exactly what he meant'". USA Today. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
  4. ↑ LaFrance, Adrienne. "Six Hours and Three Minutes of Internet Chaos". The Atlantic. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
  5. ↑ Jessica McBride (May 31, 2017). "Donald Trump & 'Covfefe' Tweet: What Did He Mean?". Heavy.com. Archived from the original on July 15, 2019. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  6. ↑ Heidi Stevens (October 18, 2017). "A covfefe by any other name ... might not have made dictionary.com's most-queried list". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 8, 2019.
  7. ↑ Danny Clemens (November 21, 2018). "Yanny vs. Laurel, 'covfefe', Beyonce's twins and more moments that broke the internet". WPVI-TV. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  8. ↑ H.R.2884 – COVFEFE Act of 2017, Actions Overview, Congress.gov. Accessed April 3, 2021.