Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has overseen several wildly successful military operations during his time on President Trump's cabinet. This includes last summer's Operation Midnight Hammer, multiple strikes on narcoterrorist boats in both the Caribbean and Pacific, Operation Southern Spear which ousted Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, and Operation Epic Fury in Iran.
During Operation Epic Fury, the military flew more than 10,000 combat flights over Iran, striking more than 13,000 targets. Through all of that, America lost 13 service members and about 400 more were wounded. During the opening phases of the Iraq War, more than 100 service members were killed and another 500+ were wounded.
Under any other Secretary of War, the Democrats would be singing his praises. During the two weeks of the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan, 13 service members were also killed and Democrats still supported Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.
But the Democrats have had Secretary Hegseth in their crosshairs for a while now, and they never miss an opportunity to attack him, even if they have to ignore his stellar record.
Hakeem Jeffries did just that again today.
JUST NOW: Hakeem Jeffries bashes Secretary of War Pete Hegseth while going on a rant defending DEI:
— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 9, 2026
"When you attack diversity, equity, and inclusion, you attack the United States of America. We have the high ground on this issue."
"They're not trying to celebrate merit.… pic.twitter.com/3PbBFkZ3Kq
"They're not trying to celebrate merit. They're trying to elevate mediocrity" may be one of the most hypocritical and ironic lines ever uttered by a Democrat.
Hakeem Jeffries attacks SecWar Hegseth:
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) April 9, 2026
“He was a FOX News host, and now he is the Secretary of Defense? No wonder things are turning out so horrifically!” pic.twitter.com/0TL5aYc5Jp
DEI is the epitome of elevating mediocrity. It looks at skin color, gender, sexual preferences and puts wholly unqualified people into positions they do not deserve. Like Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.
Temu Obama!
— MAZE (@mazemoore) April 9, 2026
True.
"The high ground" Democrats do nothing for black people besides using them as political pawns as they try to replace them with illegal aliens.
— J (@JayTC53) April 9, 2026
The same applies to women and gays, too.
Does anyone have any clues about what he's talking about? https://t.co/y9H7NnidI5
— WA Leg Watch (@360GOP) April 9, 2026
No, and neither does he.
What's wrong with these people https://t.co/iymGAHm5tI
— Angie (@BeStiilAndKnow) April 9, 2026
We don't have enough time or column inches to detail what's wrong with Democrats.
Suffice to say, it's everything.
🚨NEW: HAKEEM JEFFRIES: "DEI IS AMERICA — HEGSETH IS ELEVATING MEDIOCRITY!"
— The Ugly Patriot (@the_uglypatriot) April 9, 2026
Wrong.
DEI elevated incompetence and lowered standards. Hegseth is burying it and restoring merit. Deal with it. https://t.co/xHrOshWdyv
This is correct. DEI has done nothing but exacerbate race relations, undermine once-respected institutions, and create a system of racism that Democrats claimed to oppose.