Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. Are you confused as to why you’re seeing tweets and memes about a head of lettuce and resigning British prime minister Liz Truss? We’re here to help.
Liz Truss, the prime minister of the United Kingdom, is resigning, just weeks into the job, which isn’t as surprising as it sounds given some of the political turmoil over there.
But we’re here to talk about lettuce. Why? Because you’re wondering what the heck is up with the lettuce and Truss. And we’ve got answers:
Wait wait, back it up: Who's Liz Truss
She was the British Prime Minister after Boris Johnson resigned back in September. She was the leader of the Conservative party.
And what does she have to do with lettuce?
Because The Daily Star, a tabloid in England, purchased a head of lettuce and asked, with a live stream, “will Truss outlast a lettuce?”
More from the New York Times:
The lettuce gag was inspired by The Economist, which noted on Oct. 11 that between a near-immediate political implosion at the beginning of her tenure and the 10 days of mourning after Queen Elizabeth II died, her grip on power amounted to seven days, or “roughly the shelf-life of a lettuce.”
That's what people are saying on Thursday?
Yeeep!
BREAKING NEWS:
🚨 THE LETTUCE HAS OFFICIALLY OUTLASTED LIZ TRUSS AND WON 🚨
ALL HAIL THE LETTUCE.
— Daily Star (@dailystar) October 20, 2022
Lettuce end the debate: pic.twitter.com/WSDxch6cgF
— unusual_whales (@unusual_whales) October 20, 2022
Congrats to the lettuce https://t.co/xWU15JSkEo
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) October 20, 2022
Lettuce Cam just burst into the National Anthem
😭😭💀#GeneralElectionNow Bye Liz pic.twitter.com/43UsW9P2gq— Danny Denay #FBPE #GTTO (@DannyDenay) October 20, 2022
Wait, why did she resign in the first place after just 44 days?
Her announcement came after her attempt to roll out a series of aggressive tax cuts aimed at spurring economic growth but which dramatically roiled financial markets, led to unprecedented central bank intervention and drove her personal poll ratings to the lowest ever recorded for a prime minister.
