White House Deletes Pete Hegseth Bronze Star Video
The White House created a video promoting Pete Hegseth as the “Secretary of War” and falsely claimed he was the recipient of “the Bronze Star Medal for Valor.” He had meritorius BSMs but not for valor.
The video was taken down when the error was pointed out. Some were quick to label it as stolen valor, but it sounds like a mistake vs. a deliberate act of deception, but that’s just me.
White House Deletes Stolen Valor Pete Hegseth Hype Video
The Trump administration falsely claimed the “Secretary of War” was awarded a “Bronze Star Medal for Valor”
J.D. Wolf | Sept 7, 2025Trump’s administration staged a high-profile event yesterday to unveil an executive order renaming the Department of Defense back to its pre–World War II title, the Department of War. Along with the change, Pete Hegseth was declared the new “Secretary of War.”The promote this rebrand, the White House posted a slickly produced hype video highlighting Hegseth’s military record. The video, however, sparked scrutiny when it claimed Hegseth had been awarded the Bronze Star Medal “for valor.”
Category: Bronze Star
Hate to sound like an apologist, but it sounds like an aide made a mistake. Taking it down was the right thing to do.
Most who never served are unaware of the difference between a BSM with the “V” device and one without.
Absolutely. That’s why it gets exploited by valor thieves.
People don’t know what they don’t care enough to research, let alone learn by actually serving.
Mind you, I have known plenty of people who have served one term and got out, and they don’t know the difference.
So, what this actually tells me, is the level of disconnect and lack of military service among the members of the Trump administration. Sure, it is better than under the Dems, who have absolutely no clue about anything, but Republicans are not much better.
Just saying.
Unless Hegseth himself approved and authorized the video content, I don’t see how this is on him. Like rgr said, outside of the Military the average person has no idea what a bronze star is for (valor or not) and just figure they all are for some kind of hostile action situation.
Yep, this claim was not on Hegseth, unless he personally screened and approved it. As a fellow non-Ranger Rakkasan, though, I have to say that his service is about as average as it comes. I mean, he volunteered for active service (hence his assignment as a Platoon Leader in 3-187 Infantry), which is more than a lot of Guard leaders do, but unless something has changed in the past 20 years, officers in 3-187 are almost always tabbed. My understanding was that the battalion, along with a handful in 82nd Airborne and other units, was where 2LTs pre-selected for 75th Ranger went to get their initial PL time.
I’m glad we got someone in the SecDef/SecWar position who hasn’t been blinded by advanced rank or years in Washington politics. Given all of the inaccurate statements made on behalf of prominent veterans, though, it might be necessary for people to start taking personal interest in bios and “highlights” of their military service.
I mean, I have at least three bronze stars, but they’re worn on my campaign medals. There were also three silver stars on my Recruiter Badge, but two of those were replaced by Gold Stars. Wasn’t there a (D) politician years ago that tried to claim Bronze or Silver Stars based on that? I know Hegseth is a busy man, but especially in this day and age, it would probably be beneficial to have a glance at a script before it’s published.
It is different with the Guard. When I went to Airborne School as an older 2LT in 1997, We had a Guard Infantry E7 show up with no skill badges or tab. He pretty much got chewed out for that on day 1 and they kept giving him a hard time. Day 5 we are in the middle of a run and they pick up the pace to about about a 6 1/2 minute mile to get a few drop outs. He “trips” on something and literally rolls end over end about three times before he flops. Never saw him again.
I have seen weird things from Guard officers and soldiers that I have never seen anywhere else but lack of schools is a big one.
I definitely understand, which is why I wasn’t picking on Hegseth for his lack of a tab (or at least didn’t mean to). He volunteered, got sent overseas with 3-187, and given his Guard status was probably one of a handful (at most) of Infantry officers in 3rd BDE 101st without a tab. When I went to Air Assault School in 2004, there were a number of Guard Soldiers attending, due to being on Title 10 orders and spending a couple of months on Campbell before they were due to deploy. A 2LT told me he and his Soldiers were ecstatic, because they’d likely have never gotten the chance to attend otherwise. Hell, a coworker is in the LAARNG and fits the stereotype of the career junior ranking Guardsman. He’s a 30-something-year-old SGT, at least (I don’t know how many ancient SPCs I’ve seen in Guard units), but about to hit 20, with plans to retire as soon as he can. He was scheduled for ALC (formerly BNCOC) a few months back but his slot was pulled due to lack of funding. So, even NCOES and other professional development courses are subject to lack of funding. Me being me, I told him that his ALC slot was probably one of a few that were yanked so another unit could send some “good ol’ boy” favorite to go camp out at Ranger School for a few months, with hopes of getting a tab after a couple recycles. On Brigade staff, we got a 55-year-old SSG who’d hit Sanctuary in the VAARNG and opted to spend his last couple of years on AD. He had his CIB and Surface Warfare Badge, but nothing else. Still, no one, even the Ops SGM, really gave him crap. He’d joined the Navy in 1976 (two years before I was born), got selected for E-7, but got out after Desert Storm. In the mid-2000s, he joined the Guard on a whim, running convoys in Iraq. He told me he never got challenged by any officer or NCO that didn’t know him and couldn’t see his rank,… Read more »
Every time these mistakes happen, It’s the aides that don’t know what the fuck they are doing
You all so willingly and effortlessly give Hegseth the benefit of the doubt despite his history.
And you have done the same for other republicans. But not Dems.
You don’t give Dems the benefit of the doubt on this. Just republicans.
Stolen valor is only something Dems do apparently.
It kind of wild to watch.
You all fall in line with the same narrative over and over.
Like watching the autonomic system of a cult.
“autonomic”
Had to look that up. Thanks, explains a lot of medical shit that
that links various nervous system troubles.
Go away. No one here cares what you think or have to spout.
He wont. He says that he will but he never does……
Much like herpes.
Hi, Lars.
I thought you’d be among the (paid) protesters in DC or Chi-raq.
Still spouting your nonsense, though, aren’t you?
No USAID money to replenish his “medic” bag.
He should be there collecting those Soros-bucks. It is the only job he is qualified to perform.
If Hegseth had lied about his service, we would have called him out. Your dem overlords lead the charge in governmental stolen valor. And you reelect them. Every single time. Frauds of a feather stick together. Backing each other’s play and circling the wagons, defending and excusing. One could call that a cult, couldn’t one? Of course, you can’t, not from the inside looking out.
You’re dismissed.
The actual “cult” is the cult of big government. Trump is the antidote.
Howdy, Lars?
The Apologist-In-Chief of Dumb-o-crat Party chimes in…
Mr. See-no evil, hear-no-evil, speak-no-evil of the Vegetable In Chief for 4 years that spoke to dead politicians, a never offered football scholly to USNA, and had a cheat sheet to tell him to sit in his OWN seat thinks she/they is cute. This pic is for you…again
Randy “Duke” Cunningham. Not stolen valor, but none of us here are angry he went to prison. Fuck you.
I remember more than a few Republican pols we’ve taken down over the years.
Political party means nothing when it comes to false claims of valor; you make a false claim of valor, we’re going to take you down for it.
I know it…and YOU know it.
So, if you don’t mind, please cease these false statements you continually make. They’re an embarrassment.
That’s one major difference between democrats and republicans. Republicans generally get rid of their shitbags, posers, frauds, and criminals. Democrats reelect theirs.
I wouldn’t belong to either corrupt party. It’s one party pretending to be two.
He never claimed it and when he found out about it, made them take it down, so end of story.
Now do Obama claiming in his autobiography that he was born in Kenya.
We can always count on you to be the village idiot!
Village? Continent.
What village would have him? Also, what village raised him?
One In Kenya…
Dude you’re such an enormous, sloppy pussy it’s quite funny to watch you come here and try to insult other people.
You don’t even have the balls to fire back when put on blast for it either. Hilarious.
Look! Its:
Impotent Rage!
The Liberal Hero
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WWIw8SJhSX4
Wow,you better go get checked. It’s possible your TDS has morphed into retardation. Guess you’re lucky stupidity doesn’t hurt…
My BSMs are all for merit. If anyone asks what they are for I try to put them off and if that doesn’t work I simply repeat what I can recall from the action blocks.
For CAB, I simply say what it says in the action block, which I will keep to myself ATM, since they are all the same it makes a phony super easy to spot.
Governor Wes Moore was unavailable for comment.
Nothing to see here…
Shouldn’t anyone in Hegseth’s position,
any cabinet position, and certainly many many positions below,
be VERIFYING any and every bio video?
IMHO – No pass.
Blaming the aides is weak sauce.
30 seconds to review a video, easily sent with email, PM, or text.
He is responsible for this getting out.
———————————
BTW,
How does everyone here feel
about a candidate for elective office, any office, high or low,
claiming to be “Endorsed by President Trump”,
when he / she never was?
Big deal?
Little deal?
No deal?
IMHO – Big deal, trying to CON voters.
Danang Dick is still there so who gives a shit. Ignore everything that is getting done and create nonsense because something wrong was accidentally put out. Or maybe it wasn’t so accidental,the way shit is going now.