Pete Hegseth Mocked for Disastrous Typo During Cabinet Meeting With Donald Trump: ‘They Can’t Even Spell Right’

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth became the unintended punchline of Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting with Donald Trump after a glaring typo appeared on a card displaying his name and title.

During the televised gathering on December 2, Hegseth’s card identified him as the “SSecretary of War” — a mistake critics had a field day calling out and criticizing given the weight of national security topics being discussed.

The newly appointed Pentagon chief had used the meeting to defend a series of deadly boat strikes in the Caribbean, insisting his mission was to put “narcoterrorists at the bottom of the ocean,” however, viewers were too distracted by the double “S” showcased beside his name.

Among critics was, of course, California Gov. Gavin Newsom — who was quick to draw attention to the disastrous mistake.

“What does the ‘SS’ stand for? Interesting!” he wrote via his press office account, referencing a chilling connection to Nazi Germany’s SS paramilitary force that was responsible for the mass murders of roughly six million Jewish people during the Holocaust.

Several others joined in on the social media chatter, with journalist Nick Monroe predicting: “Somebody is SO FIRED for the SSecretary typo.”

One 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 SSecretary 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.”

Another person wondered if the double letter was intentional, asking, “An SS reference or a warning?”

Pointing out the symbolism behind the typo, someone else commented, “‘SS’ is kind of fitting tbh, they too were hyper-concerned with clean shaven soldiers that were micromanaged and they put a lot of stock in the aesthetics [sic].”

“Ssecretary Hegseth commits war crimes and his staff commits font fascism,” an additional critic quipped.

Others used the typo to resurface longstanding accusations about Hegseth’s alleged drinking habits.

Political commentator Keith Olbermann took a jab, posting, “‘SSECRETARY OF WAR.’ The extra ‘S’ is for SCOTCH!”

“It’s because he stutters when he’s drunk,” an X user snubbed.

Hegseth was previously accused of drinking during work events he oversaw for veterans’ advocacy groups, though he’s denied doing so.

His former Fox News colleagues also opened up about Hegseth’s allegedly excessive consumption of alcohol during a series of interviews conducted by NBC News in 2024.