The White House on Wednesday suggested that President Donald Trump may withdraw the U.S. From the Paris climate agreement, a 195-nation pact to take action against global warming.
But the Internet was too busy making jokes about a decidedly Trumpian typo, according to Google.
Trump’s climate withdrawal is expected later this week in the face of opposition from investors, who say their longterm investments could be in danger if climate change accelerates. (If you need a more thorough refresher on the 2015 agreement, check out this Coins2Day explainer on the Paris Climate Accord.)
Yet the news that captivated the world today was “covfefe,” the word that Trump apparently typed (and since deleted) shortly after midnight. According to data from Google Trends, which monitors what people search for using the company’s eponymous search tool, users felt a more pressing urge to search for Trump’s bewildering tweet—and not reports of a surprising policy decision.
Google Trends data is often used as a proxy for general interest in a topic since it measures what terms people are typing into Google. It doesn’t reveal how many people perform searches, but it does show how search terms compare to one another. In this case, it’s clear that “covfefe” stole the show for four hours.
It’s important to note that Trump hasn’t yet withdrawn from the Paris accord. He’s said himself it will be a few days before he’s ready to announce his decision.
I will be announcing my decision on the Paris Accord over the next few days. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2017
Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey pointed out that if the president does withdraw, the move would make the U.S. One of three countries to leave the agreement. Syria abstained because it’s in the midst of a civil war. Nicaragua refused to join because the terms of the agreement do not go far enough, according to the Washington Post.
If @realdonaldtrump withdraws from #ParisAgreement, the US will be 1 of only 3 countries not participating: https://t.co/vGBGPgzh9E
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) May 31, 2017
While Google Trends data is sometimes used to quantify interest in the latest meme, celebrity dust-up or scandal instead of weightier topics and shame users for not showing more interest in weightier topics, like climate change, Teen Vogue writer Lily Herman makes an important point: Most people aren’t talking about or searching for “covfefe” to the exclusion of everything else.
