Matt Gaetz mocked after saying the United States fought so kids didn’t have British accents

Rep. Matt Gaetz has been teased on social media following a tweet about American children taking on British overtones due to how much they watched a British TV show Peppa Pig.

Gaetz, a Republican who represents Florida’s 1st Congressional District, responded to an article by The Wall Street Journal‘s Meghan Boborowsky on the popular show’s effects on American children’s speech.

Boborowsky tweeted: “American children watched Peppa Pig so much during the pandemic that they developed British accents and began to regularly use British words like ‘vacation’ instead of ‘vacation’, confusing their parents.”

Retweeting the reporter, Gaetz wrote: “We fought wars so that didn’t happen.”

While the congressman’s comment may have been ironic, many Twitter users took the opportunity to make mocking remarks.

Some have jokingly wondered if Gaetz was referring to the War of Independence – when the 13 American colonies gained independence from Britain.

“So kids wouldn’t learn British pronunciations? I’m pretty sure the War of Independence was about something a little more than that,” Twitter user Peter Cassizzi wrote.

Drew Peacock asked, “We fought wars so that kids wouldn’t imitate what they see on TV? What war was it, Matt?”

“No. My father served at the Pacific Theater so that we weren’t invaded by fascists, not so that we weren’t speaking with a British accent. Wars are no joke, sir,” Louisa Morgan tweeted.

The United States fought two wars against the British: the War of Independence from 1775 to 1783 and the War of 1812 from 1812 to 1815. The two nations then became allies, fighting side by side during the First and Second World War.

“For Pete’s sake, Matt’s kids spoke with British accents after watching Peppa Pig long before that. May I suggest someone teach you how to use Google,” user Laura Di Bella said.

Others fought for Peppa Pig, championing the show which has proven popular with children in many countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom. The show focuses on a pig family and their animal friends and neighbors.

Twitter user Brndn Sweeney joked about the accent, writing, “Peppa Pig is one of the best shows on TV. Rather. Pip pip cheerio.”

“[W]Watching with my daughters when they were young, I loved Peppa Pig. and always hate Matt Gaetz, “wrote user Spinvaxxed Finn, an entirely different user, Queen of Typos, replied,” My daughter loved Peppa. And me too !
And as far as Matt is concerned, I’m with you! “

Gaetz’s tweet did raise some questions about the founding fathers’ accent, however, with some users suggesting they spoke with British accents.

“Wait until Matt finds out the Founding Fathers had foreign accents,” wrote user Spang.

It’s far from a definite question, however. Dialect coach Catherine Charlton spoke with Vanity Show in 2008 on accents in the historic mini-series John Adams. She said we “don’t know exactly” what the Founding Fathers looked like.

The official site of Mount Vernon, home of George Washington, notes that the accent of the first president may have been “predominantly American with detectable English influence.”

News week asked Rep Matt Gaetz for comment.