Pelosi, a Ripped Speech, and the Records Debate

Q: Did House Speaker Nancy Pelosi break the law by ripping up the president’s State of the Union address?

A: Legal experts have widely dismissed the idea that Pelosi’s copy of the address would be subject to a criminal statute cited by some conservatives.

FULL QUESTION

Did Nancy Pelosi tear up an official copy of the speech at the State of the Union Address?  Is she liable for any legal penalty?

FULL ANSWER

While House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s supporters praised her decision to publicly rip up her copy of President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address at the end of his Feb. 4 speech, conservatives lambasted the act, calling it “partisan” and “childish.” But some, including the president himself, went further by alleging that the act was illegal.

“First of all, reporters. “You’re not allowed — it’s illegal what she did.”