Melania Trump, Donald Trump’s wife, gave a powerful speech on Monday night. She impressed the crowd, but it also soon became apparent that her speech borrowed heavily from Michelle Obama’s speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2008.
The evidence is powerful, and Twitter ate it up, sending #MelaniaTrumpQuotes trending all night. On Tuesday, RNC communications director Sean Spicer attempted to shut down the controversy, saying that Melania’s speech could also be interpreted as “plagiarizing” other well-known figures … like Twilight Sparkle from My Little Pony.
No, I’m not joking. He actually said this. Here is the NBC footage.
WATCH: RNC spokesman quotes 'My Little Pony,' John Legend & Akon in argument defending Melania Trump's speech https://t.co/l7XtmEuYMT
— NBC News (@NBCNews) July 19, 2016
Naturally, the Internet ate it up. This sent “My Little Pony” viral on Twitter, and produced ridiculous memes.
My Little Pony and the #RNCinCLE are trending and TWILIGHT SPARKLE is getting the headlines!?! COME ON! #VoteHorse pic.twitter.com/uWpxOJRcMW
— P Kats (@pixelkitties) July 19, 2016
Here are the seven figures who should sue Melania for plagiarism.
7. Michelle Obama.
This one is rather straightforward, and hard to argue with. Michelle declared, “Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values that you work hard for what you want in life, that your word is your bond and you do what you say you’re going to do, that you treat people with dignity and respect…”
Melania? “From a young age, my parents impressed on me the values that you work hard for what you want in life. That your word is your bond, and you do what you say and keep your promise. That you treat people with respect.”
The second paragraph is also an almost verbatim quote from Michelle. Check it out:
"irony" is the Trump campaign plagiarising a speech about the importance of hard work https://t.co/oPDWy6GdxW pic.twitter.com/C9jpb08dLi
— Josh Butler (@JoshButler) July 19, 2016
Next Page: Melania and “Gangsta” rap. Literally.
6. Akon in “Gangsta.”
As Spicer declared, the rapper Akon in the song “Gangsta” declared, “Work hard for what you get in life.” Melania said “you work hard for what you want in life.”
Naturally, Akon didn’t exactly say that in the song. Instead, he said, “Work hard for what you get in life n*gger/F*** you punk n*gger.” Had Melania really plagiarized him, Trump would have at least fired the speechwriter by now.
Parental advisory is an understatement:
5. John Legend in “Our Generation.”
In his song “Our Generation (The Hope Of The World),” John Legend sang “To have a brighter future, deeper insight/Work hard to be anything you want in life/It’s what it’s all about, the longevity.”
Here’s the video:
4. Kid Rock.
Spicer also mentioned a quote from Kid Rock, which also echoes the same sentiment. Although it’s not a lyric in one of the artist’s songs, Kid Rock did say, “You’ve got to work hard for your success and you’ve got to have a steady presence. That’s the secret.”
Here’s a Kid Rock video, the song “Cowboy”:
Republican National Convention, you’ve been rickrolled!
3. Rick Astley, “Never Gonna Give You Up.”
One of the most hilarious things to come from Melania’s speech is the “plagiarism” of Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.”
Trump’s wife declared that the Donald, “will never, ever give up. And, most importantly, he will never, ever let you down.”
This reminded more than one person of the famous lyrics, “Never gonna give you up/Never gonna let you down.” Well done, Melania. RNC, you’ve been rickrolled!
Plagiarism is distracting from the epic Rick-Roll embedded in Melania Trump's speech. (Trump campaign has a mole.) pic.twitter.com/uhMPmtOxKM
— Denny Burk (@DennyBurk) July 19, 2016
And now it’s your turn, readers!
2. Captain and Tennille, “Love Will Keep Us Together.”
Yes, Melania declared “love will keep us together.” This was certainly a classic rock shout-out, rather than a declaration of anything real in their relationship…
"Love will keep us together." Yep, someone wrote that line for her. #RNCinCLE pic.twitter.com/5zeOCBZ7kE
— Paula Bolyard (@pbolyard) July 19, 2016
“Look in my heart, and let love keep us together.”
1. Twilight Sparkle from “My Little Pony.”
Melania Trump said, “The strength of your dreams and willingness to work for them.” Spicer quoted Twilight Sparkle from “My Little Pony,” who said, “This is your dream. Anything you can do in your dream you can do now.”
This comes from a 2015 episode “Do Princesses Dream Of Magic Sheep?” Here’s an excerpt.
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