It seems former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo should have thought twice before using military jargon to speak about a new conservative political action committee (PAC). The former CIA chief went on social media to promote Champion American Values PAC which, according to its website, stands up "to the radical Left’s agenda" and preserves "conservative values upon which America was founded".
"I need each of you to be a pipehitter. Get stuff done. Keep grinding," the official said in a video posted on his Twitter.
Be a Pipehitter.
— Mike Pompeo (@mikepompeo) June 15, 2021
Join the @cav_pac Cavalry.pic.twitter.com/whNqRghc9k
The post triggered a torrent of sarcastic comments with users left baffled by the term the official used.
a what now
— Max Kennerly (@MaxKennerly) June 15, 2021
I don't think that word means what Pompeo thinks it means.
— Professing Professor 🇺🇸 (@Professing_Prof) June 15, 2021
This is just embarrasing.
Many netizens joked that the former top diplomat was encouraging people to do drugs.
Don't do it.
— #TrumpIsADomesticTerrorist🤡💩 (@JANICEDAVISON13) June 16, 2021
Don't hit that pipe, pipehitters. pic.twitter.com/kbO7cbIYBp
Here you go pic.twitter.com/K0Q4kxJnXd
— Julie Goldstein (@1007julie) June 17, 2021
Other users highlighted a second meaning of the word.
You lifted this term from Student of the Gun website. You do realize the term “pipe hitter” can also refer to women who R romantically attracted to other women. Mostly used by military Special Ops groups. But you just go ahead and use it for UR own twisted purposes
— Sonny (@sonnycharette) June 16, 2021
Still others wondered why Pompeo didn’t consult with marketing experts on the term and remembered other inappropriate slogans.
Did anyone check with marketing on this one?
— double-doink (@TrumpOnElba) June 21, 2021
This is like when the Tea Party thought it was cool that people were calling them Tea Baggers.
— Pompeo the Pipehitter (@The_Process___) June 21, 2021
The former Secretary of State seemingly attempted to defend himself and posted a definition of the term.
"Being a pipehitter means getting stuff done and NEVER giving an inch. One of the best CIA officers I worked with was a former special operator. When I’d ask him about someone, if they were top-notch, he’d say, 'love that guy. Pipehitter.' He meant that person got stuff done & was dedicated to the mission. All of us need to be pipehitters,” Pompeo wrote on Twitter.
The explanation, however, failed to quell the torrent of mocking comments.
CIA getting back in the coke business?
— Sean Ferris (@AnarchyApe) June 21, 2021
— Mike Lamb (@MikeLaamb) June 21, 2021
Incidentally, the politician is not the first to have raised eyebrows using the word pipehitter. Last year a US serviceman Eddie Gallagher, who was accused of war crimes, but later acquitted, founded a non-profit organisation The Pipe Hitters Foundation, which defends "the rights and freedoms" of US servicemen and provides help when they face legal hurdles. Gallagher too was mocked for using the term.
