September 1, 2026

Pete Hegseth appears to have found yet another important use for his time as defense secretary: mocking Canadian female cadets on social media.

As his own department deals with considerable turmoil, Hegseth took aim at a photo featuring female members of the Canadian Armed Forces Cadet Program participating in a fitness challenge. Rather than simply scrolling past it, Hegseth decided to weigh in with a snide remark about their physical abilities.

The timing was, to put it mildly, interesting. The Pentagon has been dealing with upheaval, including the departure of senior officials. Still, Hegseth apparently had enough room on his schedule to concern himself with the fitness of Canadian teenagers in a youth military program.

The cadet program is designed to provide young people with leadership, citizenship and physical fitness training. These aren't Canadian special forces troops whose battlefield performance Hegseth was being asked to evaluate. They're cadets.

Hegseth's decision to publicly mock them drew an immediate backlash, especially given his position and the fact that he was targeting young women participating in a military-related program belonging to one of America's closest allies.

The irony is hard to miss. Hegseth has repeatedly presented himself as a champion of military strength and capability. Yet when his own department is experiencing turmoil, he seems to have found an especially pressing national-security issue: Canadian girls doing pushups.

Priorities, apparently.

Hegseth's remark didn't go down well on the Bad App:

Doesn't he have anything better to do than to pick on kids - or is being a 4Chan-style raging c*nt part of his job requirements in the Trump era?

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