President Obama’s declaration that “the United States military doesn’t do pinpricks” set off an immediate round of Internet mockery during his Syria speech Tuesday night.
The hashtag #Pinpricks instantly swelled with numerous tweets ridiculing the president, who was trying to make the point that the U.S. military should not simply lob a few tomahawk cruise missiles at Bashar al-Assad’s government in order to send a message, which was his original plan.
“#JohnKerry was for #PinPricks before he was against them,” tweeted one user.
“Something about #pinpricks reminds me of George Carlin,” tweeted another.
Obama predictably delayed a congressional vote on the Syria resolution while he pursues diplomatic avenues with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Assad has promised to hand over his chemical weapons, with conditions.
It is unclear whether the clip of Obama’s timeless sound byte “the United States military doesn’t do pinpricks” will be preserved in the future Obama Presidential Library.