US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth became the unintended punchline of the recent Cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump after a glaring typo appeared on a card displaying his name and title.
In the meeting, Hegseth had tried to defend a series of deadly boat strikes in the Caribbean, insisting his mission was to put “narco-terrorists at the bottom of the ocean” but netizens were distracted by his typo.
The televised gathering showed showed Hegseth’s card spelling his designation as ‘SSecretary of War’.
California Governor among critics
California Governor Gavin Newsom was among those who drew attention to the mistake, with critics claiming that members of the Trump administration aren’t able to spell their words correctly.
“What does the ‘SS’ stand for? Interesting!” Newsom wrote on X, referencing a chilling connection to Nazi Germany’s SS paramilitary force that was responsible for the mass murder of roughly six million Jewish people during the Holocaust.
Others too joined the chatter, with journalist Nick Monroe predicting: “Somebody is SO FIRED for the SSecretary typo.”
Another individual questioned how such a slip-up could even happen at a televised presidential Cabinet meeting, noting, “How does no one who set up the meeting for the cabinet of the US catch the double ‘S’ on Secretary Kegseth’s name card? This is the most [powerful] group of people, and they can’t even spell that s–t right? JFC that’s wild.”
Why are people angry at Hegseth?
Hegseth had authorised a second strike on a suspected Venezuelan drug-trafficking boat in the Caribbean on September 2, following an initial missile attack that left two survivors afloat, according to reports from US officials and The Washington Post. The White House confirmed Hegseth empowered Admiral Frank Bradley to conduct “kinetic strikes” to neutralise the vessel and threat, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt stating Bradley acted within legal bounds. Bipartisan lawmakers, UN officials, and legal experts had raised serious concerns that it may constitute a war crime or extrajudicial killing under the laws of armed conflict.
Hegseth’s past controversies
Hegseth has faced numerous controversies rooted in personal allegations and leadership missteps.
During his nomination, reports surfaced of a 2017 sexual assault allegation at a Republican conference. Workplace incidents involving day drinking, aggressive behaviour, and tattoos linked by extremism experts to far-right and neo-Nazi groups, which Hegseth had dismissed as “anonymous smears,” had also surfaced, The Guardian reported.
This year, Hegseth sparked outrage with a Signal group chat scandal, where he shared sensitive Yemen strike details that inadvertently reached a journalist, prompting concerns over his judgment from national security officials.