Trump - who is known for ‘covfefe’ and ‘Ron DeSanctimonious’ - chooses his words ‘carefully,’ his VP contends

‘Surely, you jest,’ one X user wrote in response to Vance

Social media has been quick to mock Vice President JD Vance after he claimed President Donald Trump “chooses his words carefully.”

“So much of American diplomacy has become pure performance--an obsession with *saying* this or that,” Vance wrote on X. “The reason the failed establishment hates President Donald J. Trump is because he chooses his words carefully and, more importantly, is much more focused on *doing*.”

Some agreed with the statement — including Elon Musk, who simply replied: “True.” But many were quick to point out Trump’s history of strange phrasing and his “casual” way of speaking.

President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance gesture to a crowd. Vance defended Trump on X, claiming the president ‘chooses his words carefully’ (Getty Images)

“I’m not sure it’s true that Trump chooses his words carefully…don’t you think he sometimes speaks rather casually?” author Matthew Yglesias wrote in response to Vance’s post.

“Surely, you jest,” one user quipped.

“Yes, JD, the establishment is mad at Trump because he "chooses his words carefully" you nailed it,” Tommy Vietor, a former staffer for Barack Obama, posted. “The guy is just so measured and cautious it drives people nuts.”

“I agree with the general statement here but “chooses his words carefully” is a bit of a stretch,” another user wrote.

Others shared gifs to poke fun at the Vice President’s post:

Vance explaining how the disconnect between Trump's mouth and brain is in fact him "choosing his words carefully" https://t.co/YpP6baG6hG pic.twitter.com/9CWBgkQd97

— Joedas Priest 🌹🇫🇮🇮🇱🇺🇦 (@JoedasPriest) February 25, 2025

"he chooses his words carefully" https://t.co/xXgpNZJ12i pic.twitter.com/jm7fH9sjvR

— Jason Hart (@jasonahart) February 25, 2025

Trump has an extensive history of giving long-winded, off-script speeches and coining his own phrases, like “lamestream media” or “Ron DeSanctimonious” — a derogatory nickname for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Trump’s lengthy speeches could even cost the White House, with staff reportedly in talks to hire more stenographers to keep up with the president’s remarks.

Trump’s stream-of-consciousness speeches during his campaign, which often took dark and disjointed turns, led him to coin another phase: “the weave.”

“You make a speech, and my speeches last a long time because of the weave, you know, I mean, I weave stories into it,” he explained to Joe Rogan. “If you don’t — if you just read a teleprompter, nobody’s going to be very excited. You’ve got to weave it.”

Other gaffes include the infamous “covfefe” incident, in which Trump inexplicably posted at 12:06 a.m. on May 31, 2017: “Despite the constant negative press covfefe.”

Sean Spicer, serving as White House press secretary at the time, claimed, “the president and a small group of people know exactly what he meant.”

But to this day, the meaning of “covfefe” is still unclear.

The Independent has contacted Vance’s office for comment.