Social media erupted after President Donald Trump appeared to refuse to shake the hand of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) before the State of the Union address even began.

The president walked to the lectern in the chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives amidst thunderous applause and chants of "four more years!" from his supporters and the Republicans.

He turned away from Pelosi just as she was reaching to shake his hand. It was unclear if the snub was intentional or not.

The moment quickly went viral on social media:

"Well that's the moment. Unless he lights himself on fire trumps refusal to shake Pelosi's hand or what looked like it will be the meme," responded former Obama administration official Jen Psaki.



"Pelosi reached out to shake Trump's hand and Trump snubbed her," noted CNN's Manu Raju.

"BREAKING: Speaker Pelosi just went to shake Trump's hand and he ignored her. What a classless lunatic. An international embarrassment. Gross," responded liberal activist Scott Dworkin.

ABC News senior producer John Santucci noted that Pelosi also appeared to shorten the traditional introduction for the president.

"Usually the speaker says - 'Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United States.' Pelosi just said 'the President of the United States,'" noted Santucci.



Several Democrats, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), refused to attend the address in protest against the president.

Here's a video about the viral interaction: