The memes existed long before the 2016 election: imagined conversations between President Obama and Vice President Biden, accompanied by photos of the duo accomplishing a variety of activities — laughing, snapping selfies, licking ice cream, discussing what appears to be very serious and official White House business.
They chuckle; they’re stern. They look like best buddies.
And in each one, the men in their imagined conversations adopt the same personalities: Biden, the mischievous instigator. Obama, the sober adult.
But since America elected a new commander in chief last week, the Obama/Biden memes have shifted in their thematic target. Now, they’re taking on President-elect Donald Trump — more specifically, Joe Biden’s imaginary ploys to prank Trump.
Memes have surfaced featuring a defiant Joe:
And others imagine the vice president making jokes about Trump’s tiny hands:
Then there are the ones directed at the man who will take over for Biden, Indiana Gov. and Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who earned a reputation in that state and now across the country for his stoicism and traditionally conservative social views:
For his part, Biden has provided the Internet plenty of fodder. The man’s favorite word is malarkey, he has a propensity for verbal missteps (The Washington Post even created a Joe Biden Gaffe-o-Meter) and he seems to lack the ability to control all facial expressions — at debates, State of the Union addresses and even super important speeches delivered by President Obama from the White House.
Despite his fun-loving Uncle Joe nickname, Biden has actually been called one of the most influential vice presidents in the country’s history. As The Post’s Joel Goldstein wrote in July, “Biden negotiated various budget deals with Republican leaders and managed the economic recovery plan and the Iraq disengagement.” And Biden has led the administration’s fight against campus sexual assault, including writing a widely read open letter to the young woman who was sexually assaulted by former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner.
Nevertheless, it’s the vice president’s laid-back personality and mischievous sense of humor that has won America’s hearts during his eight years in the White House.
Politics aside, the meme world will miss him.
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