Bernie Sanders Inauguration Mittens Meme Just Won t Quit: Here Are Some Of The Funniest Versions
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Most memes are lucky if they live to see a second day. An image of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders at [/how-to/biden-inauguration-concert-live-now-replay-how-to-watch-the-speech-poem-songs-and-more/ Wednesday's inauguration], sitting with his arms crossed and wearing a mask and Spam For Me big mittens, is proving to be an exception. Since Inauguration Day, it's been shared and tweaked endlessly -- and even inspired a bobblehead figurine. And it's still going strong days after it emerged.
What is this mittens meme anyway?On the remote chance you haven't see the photo, Email Lists it shows Sanders wearing a familiar winter jacket, a blue face mask and gigantic mittens that were a gift to him from Vermont teacher Jen Ellis.
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"I made Bernie's mittens as a gift a couple years ago," Ellis tweeted on Wednesday. "They are made from repurposed wool sweaters and lined with fleece (made from recycled plastic bottles)."
I made Bernie's mittens as a gift a couple years ago. They are made from repurposed wool sweaters and lined with fleece (made from recycled plastic bottles). [ #BerniesMittens] [ pic.twitter.com/lTXFJvVy9V]
— Jen Ellis (@vtawesomeness) [ January 21, 2020]
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Now, Bernie is everywhere
Sanders' casual clothing and presumed grumpy, dadcore appearance have inspired creative types to pop his image into all kinds of scenes, from [ The Sopranos] and [ Forrest Gump] to [ historical photographs]. He's showed up in [ Game of Thrones], [ The Shining], [ Star Trek] and [ The Bachelor], on [ Chicago's El], [ with Batman] and as the [ fly on Mike Pence's head] from the [/news/mike-pence-fly-memes-dominated-the-vice-presidential-debate/ October vice presidential debate]. He's even been [ painted onto fingernails].
I had some spare time today and wanted to create these [ #BernieSanders] [ #berniesmittens] nails ✨ [ pic.twitter.com/yZI0EpAU5F]
— thestrugglingentrepreneur (@yournailplugx) [ January 22, 2021]
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Bernie Sanders, first of his name, Wearer of Mittens, Sitter of Chairs [ pic.twitter.com/1j6p8mrdlr]
— Matthew Mucha (@mattymooch) [ January 20, 2021]
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[ #BernieMemes] [ #BernieSanders]
Bernie is shining! [ pic.twitter.com/R9n09pATJ7]
— AlfBergan (@AlfBergan) [ January 21, 2021]
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The new arrival is causing quite a stir. 👀 [ #TheBachelor] [ pic.twitter.com/peNG7DkpgH]
— Bachelor Nation (@bachnation) [ January 20, 2021]
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And here's the Star Trek version of the Bernie's Mittens meme. 😂❤️🖖🧤 [ pic.twitter.com/HkEn9iVdVf]
— Lyla Miklos (@lylamiklos) [ January 21, 2021]
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It's fun to make [ #Berniememes] [ pic.twitter.com/BBWD3KaETC]
— Brian Grubb (@McGrubby) [ January 24, 2021]
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[ pic.twitter.com/WUXsX0Z9hm]
— Meredith Salenger (@MeredthSalenger) [ January 21, 2021]
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Doors Closing. [ pic.twitter.com/c7SjrUxHAp]
— cta (@cta) [ January 20, 2021]
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I don't care if you're tired of seeing [ #Berniememes]. This is awesome! [ pic.twitter.com/kDgKZzN5wP]
— Ann Werner (@MsWerner) [ January 23, 2021]
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The best Bernie Sanders Inauguration meme [ pic.twitter.com/VSn8gtryY4]
— UGene🐝 (@EugeneGlukh) [ January 20, 2021]
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This is my favorite thus far. [ #Berniememes] [ #berniesmittens] [ #Bernie] [ pic.twitter.com/uoPkYgEIqw]
— Liz Evans, NBCT (@lizevansnbct) [ January 22, 2021]
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Site lets you put Bernie anywhere
Swapping Sanders into new places got even easier when NYU grad student Nick Sawhney [ created a website] that lets users place the image in any Google Street View photograph. Sawhney [ told Wired magazine] that the site took off well beyond his expectations, and he panicked as its popularity brought him increased fees. (He's accepting donations and made a deal with the cloud platform that hosts the site, and says he has enough cash on hand to keep the site alive for another week or so, Wired reports.)
Chairman Bernie sweatshirt sold out
On Thursday, Sanders' official site began taking preorders for a crewneck sweatshirt showing the image of a grumpy Sanders in the chair, with the "Bernie" logo. It's $45 but [ sold out right away]. The site dubbed the shirt the "Chairman Sanders crewneck" and advertises it as showing, "Vermont jacket, Vermont gloves, Vermont common sense." The site adds that 100% of proceeds go to Meals on Wheels Vermont.
Bernie Sanders' sweatshirt immediately sold out. All proceeds go to Meals on Wheels Vermont.
Screenshot by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
Bobblehead Bernie
And mittened Bernie is going 3D. The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum, which apparently exists, is making a bobblehead of the moment. You can [ preorder it now] for $25, though it's possibly by the expected May delivery you'll have forgotten why it was even funny.
Political bobbleheads have been popular since 1960 when the first bobblehead of President John F. Kennedy was made. Now we're unveilin[ pic.twitter.com/up7biwA5V2][ pic.twitter.com/up7biwA5V2]
— National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum (@BobbleheadHall) [ January 20, 2021]
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The image has also found its way on to [ stickers].
The senator speaks
Sanders was absolutely true to himself when asked to comment. First, he [ defended his outfit]to Gayle King on CBS This Morning. "In Vermont, we know something about the cold, and we're not so concerned about good fashion," he said. "We want to keep warm, and that's what I did today."
He also told CNN reporter Ali Zaslav he was glad the viral photo "makes people aware that we make good mittens in Vermont" and praised his state's coat-making abilities, and no, that sentence is not made up.
Bernie Sanders said of the photo that went viral of him sitting bundled up on Inauguration Day that he's glad it "makes people aware that we make good mittens in Vermont," when asked by [ @alizaslav]
He added, "We have some good coats as well."
— Clare Foran (@ckmarie) [ January 21, 2021]
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No mittens for you
Ellis [ told The Jewish Insider]she doesn't have any more mittens to sell.
"There's no possible way I could make 6,000 pairs of mittens, and every time I go into my Bulk Email server, another several hundred people have emailed me," she said in the interview. "I hate to disappoint people, but the mittens, they're one-of-a-kind and they're unique and sometimes in this world, you just can't get everything you want."
Best of the Bernie meme
Here are 10 personal favorite early versions of the meme. Your mileage may vary, of course.
1. The unnecessary meeting
"When you get invited to a meeting but it should have been an email." What office employee can't relate?
When you get invited to a meeting but it should have been an email [ pic.twitter.com/RxnM0QWask]
— Alex Cohen (@anothercohen) [ January 20, 2021]
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2. 'Joe's thing'
Slightly different photo, but this one's a winner Spam For Me the perfectly phrased faux schedule for Sanders' day, including "drop off dry cleaning," "Joe's thing" and "swing by the post office."
10:30 - drop off dry cleaning
11:00 - Joe's thing
2:00 - swing by the post office [ pic.twitter.com/JJr3SECKeB]
— Brody Logan (@BrodyLogan) [ January 20, 2021]
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3. Prepared pockets
Every grandpa's jacket is like this. The caption reads, "You cannot tell me these pockets are not absolutely stuffed to the brim with crumpled tissues and receipts."
You cannot tell me these pockets are not absolutely stuffed to the brim with crumpled tissues and receipts [ pic.twitter.com/6ewKEDWBZH]
— Jess Dweck (@TheDweck) [ January 20, 2021]
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4. Bernie in Nighthawks
Sanders has been edited into plenty of famous images, including many paintings, but somehow his stubbornly solitary figure fits right in to Edward Hopper's Nighthawks.
I am once again asking for some coffee. [ #berniesmittens] [ pic.twitter.com/CDVFbnx0oo]
— Heather Hill (@Tvini) [ January 21, 2021]
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5. Steal his look
Fashion magazines love to tell readers how to re-create a certain outfit. The best part about this is the manila envelope.
Bernie Sanders, Steal his look [ pic.twitter.com/c4Hw48aCUu]
— Emilia (@EmiliaDeLarge) [ January 20, 2021]
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6. Envelope of mystery
BuzzFeed's [ Ruby Cramer reports] that the manila envelope Sanders is clutching in one image holds his inauguration tickets. OK, that seems plausible, but other ideas are funnier, including this one that claims that "inside the envelope is an article Bernie cut out of the newspaper that he thought Biden would find interesting."
Inside t[ January 20, 2021][ January 20, 2021]
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7. The heat is on
Back in 2020, Sanders [ became a meme for "once again, asking for your financial support."] The "once again" meme met the "Grandpa Bernie in a chair" meme with this one, which features Sanders ""once again asking for a space heater." L[ January 20, 2021][ January 20, 2021]
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8. Bernie with Deadpool
This one makes the list solely because Ryan Reynolds, who plays Deadpool, shared it.
[ View this post on Instagram][ A post shared by Ryan Reynolds (@vancityreynolds)]
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9. Merch table Bernie
Something about this setting just rocks. Maybe because it's been so long since any of us have been to live concerts. "No, we don't have the gray shirt in an XL!"
Please reply with your favorite Bernie in the chair meme, I'll start:
~ Merch Table Bernie ~ [ pic.twitter.com/vZ7wFkPVx2]
— Vaughn Wolff • Seattle (@The_VaughnWolff) [ January 21, 2021]
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10. Places to go, things to do
And we're back to the manila envelope image for this classic, where Sanders' patience for a lengthy formal affair is running thin. It reads, "Bernie dressed like the inauguration is on his to-do list today but ain't his whole day."
Bernie dressed like the inauguration is on his to do list today but ain't his whole day. [ pic.twitter.com/wCRyoxU3V2]
— Reeezy (@MsReeezy) [ January 20, 2021]
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The dove has landed
Sanders wasn't the only inauguration meme, though he was definitely the biggest. Lady Gaga also inspired some sartorial remarks. She wore an enormous gold dove pin as she [/news/inauguration-watch-lady-gagas-emotional-rendition-of-national-anthem/ sang the national anthem], and she explained its meaning in a tweet she shared that had a close-up photo of the pin. "A dove carrying an olive branch," she wrote. "May we all make peace with each other."
A dove carrying an olive branch. May we all make peace with each other. [ pic.twitter.com/NGbgKM9XiC]
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) [ January 20, 2021]
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But some thought the pin looked more like the mockingjay, a fictional bird worn as a pin by heroine Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games book and movie series.
"Ladies and gentlemen welcome to the 1st Hunger Games," wrote one Twitter user.
"Gaga's wearing the mockingjay if you go by the book rather than the movie," wrote another.
Ladies and gentlemen welcome to the 1st Hunger Games [ pic.twitter.com/QhBxozb38h]
— Orenji (@MunchingOrange) [ January 20, 2021]
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In case you're wondering—Lady Gaga is wearing a dove, symbolizing peace, rather than the Hunger Games mockingjay
— Ben Wikler (@benwikler) [ January 20, 2021]
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Gaga's wearing the mockingjay if you go by the book rather than the movie. [ pic.twitter.com/5XvfvKiDNR]
— Jynx (@PeakJinx) [ January 20, 2021]
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When you have to sing at the inauguration at 11 and win the Hunger Games at 12 [ #InaugurationDay] [ pic.twitter.com/UBiawzcuNH]
— Betches (@betchesluvthis) [ January 20, 2021]
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So does this mean the real life battle royals will start soon or what?
— Eric (@zerokiller32) [ January 20, 2021]
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Gaga at the Inauguration (2021) [ pic.twitter.com/PGXTF8Ylfr]
— Partna ˣ (@onlychloexhalle) [ January 20, 2021]
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Lady Gaga went viral yesterday because of Star Wars and now because of Hunger Games. Her versatility [ pic.twitter.com/7R1tWrjKQx]
— Josué Monster (@EmoJoshy1) [ January 20, 2021]
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Instant photos
A moment that followed the swearing-in ceremony caught the attention of some. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer presented the new president and first lady Jill Biden with photographs of the just-completed events, which led to [/news/during-inauguration-modern-technology-of-fast-photos-wows-politicians/ some jabs at the government's technology knowledge].
"LOL, McCarthy & Hoyer give Biden & Harris instaphotos of the inauguration, like they've just gotten off the hot new roller coaster at Six Flags," wrote Mike DeBonis of The Washington Post.
LOL, McCarthy & Hoyer give Biden & Harris instaphotos of the inauguration, like they've just gotten off the hot new roller coaster at Six Flags. [ pic.twitter.com/kefDZi0nzD]
— Mike DeBonis (@mikedebonis) [ January 20, 2021]
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One of them was bragging about the "technology" as if the ability to instantly process a photo hasn't been around since Polaroid invented it a million years ago.
— Douglass Gaking (@gakingmusic) [ January 20, 2021]
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Lol and it was a full 2 hours later. Like did a staffer just run to Costco's 1 hour photo lab? tEcHnOlOgY
— killer bee (@somekillerbee) [ January 20, 2021]
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And the night ended with a gigantic firework display that had some viewers marveling at the sheer amount of pyrotechnics.
"Whoever was in charge of gathering fireworks should get on vaccines," said comedian Jordan Klepper.
Another person had some thoughts on the elaborate display, writing, "So, we don't need to spend any of the inauguration budget on port-a-potties, additional Mall security, custodial services, etc? So we can spend it on something else? Say, like, fireworks?"
Whoever was in charge of gathering fireworks should get on vaccines.
— Jordan Klepper (@jordanklepper) [ January 21, 2021]
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"So, we don't need to spend any of the inauguration budget on port-a-potties, additional Mall security, custodial services, etc? So we can spend it on something else? Say, like, fireworks?"
— Milly Millz (@sopadoalfabeto) [ January 21, 2021]
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Yeah it was kinda just like: "Katy's song has 30 seconds left but we have 5 mins worth of fireworks" and then Doug was just like "Send em."
— J.C. Howard (@TheJCHoward) [ January 21, 2021]
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Paraphrasing Maddow's statement, if there was an event that needed fireworks anywhere in America, they were out of luck.
— pamela isabell (@pamisabell) [ January 21, 2021]
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America finally made it to the Fireworks Factory 🥲 [ pic.twitter.com/zXCaVlYV07]
— 😷 Aaron M. Rosenberg (@AaronMRosenberg) [ January 21, 2021]
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