As the first press secretary for Donald Trump, then-future Dancing with the Stars contestant Sean Spicer kicked off his residency in high fashion: by lying to the press. He thundered that the 45th president’s inauguration drew bigger crowds than they did. It set a template for his successors to follow. So when Spicer got his military milestones mixed up, it only seemed fitting for a guy infamous for bending the truth.
this is a dark horse contender for the worst tweet of all time lmao pic.twitter.com/BCjzX68KA5
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 7, 2022
Wednesday was the 81st anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, when the Japanese army finally drew the United States into World War II. You wouldn’t know that if you followed Spicer on Twitter. Instead, you’d think it was the day of another WWII turning point. “Today is Dday,” he tweeted. “It only lives in infamy if we remember and share the story of sacrifice with the next generation.” He hashtagged it “#DDay.”
Alas, the Normandy landings, which laid the foundations for the Allied forces to vanquish the Axis powers, happened over the summer of 1944, on June 6. Spicer was over two years and seven months off. Spicer deleted the bumbling tweet and apologized, but only after he’d been suitably dragged for his error.
Sorry. Apologies https://t.co/YI0120hRVr
— Sean Spicer (@seanspicer) December 7, 2022
Enough people screengrabbed the gaffe before it was taken down, prompting lots and lots of jokes.
https://twitter.com/petestrzok/status/1600537054353362944
Sean Spicer's commitment to accuracy remains consistent.https://t.co/WWeb5E6MbB
— Philip Bump (@pbump) December 7, 2022
Sean Spicer majored in history at Trump University. https://t.co/asj8UpBwpO
— Windsor Mann (@WindsorMann) December 7, 2022
On behalf of my fellow historians everywhere, I would like to make a citizen’s arrest of Sean Spicer for crimes against basic historical knowledge.#PearlHarborRemembranceDay #History #WWII #PearlHarborDay pic.twitter.com/b1JP6u7wCl
— REFrankel (@REFrankel) December 7, 2022
To make matters worse, Spicer should know his military history: He joined the Navy in 1999, and is currently a commander.
Sean Spicer is, indeed, a commander in the United States Navy Reserve. https://t.co/tX5g3yGe3i
— Bradford Pearson (@BradfordPearson) December 7, 2022
Navy Reserve Public Affairs Officer Sean Spicer thought Pearl Harbor day was “Dday.” You know the day of the largest attack on US Naval forces in our history. https://t.co/eN5ueWrGgW
— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) December 7, 2022
Some wondered if Spider knew what “infamy” meant, and whether he knew it was not a good thing.
Sean, you were, or are, a Public Affairs Officer (PAO) in the *Navy*.
Also, do you even know what ‘infamy’ means? pic.twitter.com/6vKyyX1WS5
— Gerald Shewan – Sic Transit Gloria Mundi 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@SicTransit34) December 7, 2022
At least this was misinformation Spicer didn’t spread purposefully. Besides, unlike one guy who almost became a GOP congressman, he probably knows how many states there are in America.