Let's face it, it's 2026 and if you're in the public eye long enough, you're likely going to find yourself the subject of a meme sooner or later.
Sophie Cunningham's pointing meme broke the internet earlier this summer. Anthony Fauci scribbling in his diary in his preteen girl's bedroom while wearing fluffy pink socks had a moment this week.
And, of course, there's the meme of Secretary of State Marco Rubio that just won't die. It has taken many hilarious forms over the last 18 months, but we've never heard from Rubio himself how he feels about his internet fame ... until now.
The original photo of Rubio that marked (or should we say "marced"?) him for internet glory was taken on February 28, 2025, during an Oval Office bilateral meeting between President Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. Zelensky's staff filled the sofa on the left and Trump's the sofa on the right.
Rubio was caught sitting with his hands in his lap and a stern, kind of glum look on his face. He didn't look at all comfortable, and not just because there was a tense Trump-Vance-Zelensky blow up happening at the time.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s body language during the Trump-Zelensky Oval Office blowup vs. his tweet afterward pic.twitter.com/skaUiZ2hWg
— Vera Bergengruen (@VeraMBergen) February 28, 2025
It's the photo that launched a thousand memes, and was truly lightning in a bottle. It was the right look that hit at the exact right time, just as President Trump was assigning him additional duties within the administration, including running NASA and the Archives.
Rubio's exasperated expression screamed: what's next?
In an interview with Lara Trump on her Fox News show, My View with Lara Trump, Rubio revealed he hated the picture, but thinks the memes are funny: "What happened is, on that couch, if you don't have a pillow behind your back, you kind of sink... I don't really follow it very closely, but people have shown me pictures... It's funny."
🚨 LMAO! Sec. Marco Rubio just dropped this hilarious reaction to the viral meme of him sinking into the couch:
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 2, 2026
"I HATED that picture! In that couch, if you don't have a pillow, you kind of sink. I look terrible! Then it turned into this other thing, it's funny...Dan Scavino… pic.twitter.com/PIwHuAmB7X
🚨 LMAO! Sec. Marco Rubio just dropped this hilarious reaction to the viral meme of him sinking into the couch:
"I HATED that picture! In that couch, if you don't have a pillow, you kind of sink. I look terrible! Then it turned into this other thing, it's funny...Dan Scavino made a whole BOARD for me, and he's updated it with all the different pictures."
Rubio also revealed that Dan Scavino, director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office, presented him with a board that catalogues all the memes as they hit social media, from airline pilot and beekeeper to DJ and newest ruler of Venezuela.
(You'll notice in more recent photos, Rubio often now sits forward when his presence is required on that couch, lest it swallow him whole.)
At least Rubio can take comfort in knowing that although the couch may have done him dirty, the internet has made him a legend.
Now, for goodness sake, could someone please get the man a pillow?
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