I never noticed until today, when Pete has been in the news so much – are those his military medals he wears on his suit all the time? Is that the type of thing he is allowed to do if he is not in uniform? I’ve never served so I don’t know.
I don’t mean to denigrate his service: I’m sure he earned that (single) row of medals. But I couldn’t help but notice that all the generals he was lecturing – yes, even the ones with melanin and/or vaginas – had many, many more rows of them. You would think the lecture on the “warrior ethos” would be going the other way
He doesn’t have any military ribbons on him in that picture.
I think you are referring to that little line above his chest pocket. That is a handkerchief that is an American flag.
Once you are out of the uniform you can do whatever you want with your ribbons. Though it would be beyond bad taste for the secretary of defense to wear them on his suit jacket.
I never noticed until today, when Pete has been in the news so much – are those his military medals he wears on his suit all the time? Is that the type of thing he is allowed to do if he is not in uniform? I’ve never served so I don’t know.
I don’t think so, I’m pretty sure it’s an American flag handkerchief folded so part is showing. You can see it on his Wikipedia photo where it is more clearly a flag.
I would suggest he’s making it thin on purpose so it looks like medals nowadays though.
Medals are I think most often worn in uniform. He is wearing a designer suit, so would look weird if he wore his medals on his suit OR the uniform of his former service, so he settles for the thin American flag of respectability.
“He views the world from the point of view of a not terribly successful major in the National Guard,” said Eliot Cohen, a military historian who served in the State Department under President George W. Bush. “For him it’s push-ups, pull-ups and pugil sticks. It’s aggressiveness.”
I never noticed until today, when Pete has been in the news so much – are those his military medals he wears on his suit all the time? Is that the type of thing he is allowed to do if he is not in uniform? I’ve never served so I don’t know.
I don’t mean to denigrate his service: I’m sure he earned that (single) row of medals. But I couldn’t help but notice that all the generals he was lecturing – yes, even the ones with melanin and/or vaginas – had many, many more rows of them. You would think the lecture on the “warrior ethos” would be going the other way
He doesn’t have any military ribbons on him in that picture.
I think you are referring to that little line above his chest pocket. That is a handkerchief that is an American flag.
Once you are out of the uniform you can do whatever you want with your ribbons. Though it would be beyond bad taste for the secretary of defense to wear them on his suit jacket.
So he’ll probably do it at some point, is what you’re saying.
I don’t think so, I’m pretty sure it’s an American flag handkerchief folded so part is showing. You can see it on his Wikipedia photo where it is more clearly a flag.
I would suggest he’s making it thin on purpose so it looks like medals nowadays though.
Medals are I think most often worn in uniform. He is wearing a designer suit, so would look weird if he wore his medals on his suit OR the uniform of his former service, so he settles for the thin American flag of respectability.
You made me zoom in, and yes, I can see that it’s a bit of a flag handkerchief. No doubt he wants it to look like a line of medals.
There is an interesting article in the NYT on him, and how he might be being perceived by the military’s senior officers:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/30/us/politics/hegseth-military-officers.html
He is for the military what Donald Trump is for business. He’s a weak, stupid person’s idea of a tough, smart military man.
Literally played one on TV (Fox News), just like Trump.
He has more than a single line. Pretty much anyone who does any deployment will come out with a few ribbons.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Hegseth#Awards_and_decorations
The badge on his lapel is the one of his former unit insignias. http://www.uniforms-4u.com/p-army-187-infantry-unit-crest-8821.aspx