8 Times Politicians Forgot Their Mics Were On

Yep, we could hear that.

Hot ones with the mic


3 world leaders talking about Trump behind his back


World leaders congregated in London for a NATO anniversary celebration, and Justin Trudeau of Canada, Emmanuel Macron of France, and Boris Johnson of England appeared to mock the president in a video shot during a reception at Buckingham Palace. Though Trump isn’t mentioned by name, it’s obvious that the president — who spoke to reporters for over two hours earlier in the day — was the focus of the conversation.


Rep. Ike Skelton wasting no words


Rep. Ike Skelton apologized to Rep. Todd Akin for an R-rated barb over hate crimes legislation. With the microphone still on, Skelton – a Democrat from Missouri – muttered: “So stick that up your a—.”


Biden's excitement when Obamacare passed


President Obama signed the often-threatened Affordable Care Act before a crowd in the jam-packed East Room of the White House. It was the signature legislative moment of his presidency, underscored by then-Vice President Biden, who whispered into the president's ear that it was a "big f deal." The mic picked up the remark, which created quite a stir.


Reagan joking about bombing Russia


The president was asked by the “pool” National Public Radio engineers to make a pre-broadcast mic check. He obliged, declaring, “My fellow Americans, I’m pleased to tell you today that I’ve signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.” News of his offhand remark soon leaked to the media, turning what Reagan believed to be a harmless private quip into an international embarrassment


Obama's reaction to Kanye West's VMA interruption


President Barack Obama had an opinion on the matter, calling the rapper a "jackass" during a CNBC interview. Audio of Obama's comment, which came after the president was asked of his opinion of West's mean-girl antics, was released by TMZ just a few days after the VMA scandal. "I thought that was really inappropriate," Obama said. "He's a jackass."


Bush dissing a New York Times reporter


President Bush once referred to a reporter as a "major league … Adam Clymer, major-league asshole from The New York Times.” Cheney, also unaware the microphones were turned on, agreed, saying, “Oh yeah, he is, big time.”


Senators Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul discussing Republican strategy


After a CNN news hit, Paul came over to a “wired up” McConnell, who was sitting in front of a camera for his own interview. During the brief exchange, Paul suggested that Republicans would sound more reasonable if they struck a conciliatory tone on government funding than Democrats, who maintain that they won’t alter Obamacare as a condition of reopening the government.


Sen. Susan Collins dissing Texas Rep. Blake Farenthold


Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine shared how she really feels about Rep. Blake Farenthold. Her comments about the Texas Republican were picked up by a hot microphone and posted to the official Senate website. "He's huge," she said following a subcommittee meeting Tuesday morning. "He's so unattractive. It's unbelievable."


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Brut.