House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) was attempting to give a history lesson on the 56 men who signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence on Tuesday, but ended up reading a piece that had previously been proven to contain several inaccuracies.
Pelosi read the article during an event held by Democratic lawmakers to discuss the "Democrats for Democracy Reform Legislative Package" and #wethepeople campaign. The legislative package and campaign is a so-called "task force" aimed at "[reforming] government to ensure it works for all Americans."
The discredited piece, titled "The Price They Paid," was a popular essay circulating around the internet on Independence Day. The article outlines the fates of those who signed the Declaration of Independence, but according to the fact checkers at Snopes, "many of its details are inaccurate."
Pelosi introduced the reading after her Democratic colleagues discussed how the establishment of the U.S. system of government was breaking from monarchal rule, under which rulers often acted in their own self-interest and not for the people.
"It's July. We came back from the Fourth of July celebration and I saw this article," Pelosi said.
Pelosi went on to read the account inaccurately describing the fates of the men who signed the Declaration of Independence.
After she finished reading, Pelosi called on the audience to "ponder the sacrifices so many people made at the start of our country."
"Understand what our responsibility is to protect what so many people sacrificed so much to achieve for our country," Pelosi said.