Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been slammed for having influencers Jake and Logan Paul deliver a motivational speech at the Pentagon.
The Paul brothers, who have both been linked to President Trump, spoke at the Pentagon a day before National POW/MIA Recognition Day – which honors prisoners of war and those missing in action.
A spokesperson for the Defense Department touted the brothers’ visit with a video shared online, which was captioned: “Last Thursday, we welcomed Logan and Jake Paul to the Pentagon to meet with our warriors.”
However, the visit was quickly mocked online with many questioning why the Paul brothers, known for boxing, wrestling and their reality TV efforts, were chosen to speak to service members.
”Had to triple check to make sure this wasn’t a parody account,” one X user wrote.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (center) has been slammed for having Jake and Logan Paul speak to service members at The Pentagon (X/@DeptofWar)
Journalist Philip DeFranco lamented, “Every day this administration manages to embarrass the country in a new unexpected way.”
Former GOP Representative Adam Kinzinger, who voted to impeach Trump in 2021, also slammed the video on social media.
”We aren’t a serious country at the moment,” Kinzinger wrote.
Tom Nichols, a staff writer at The Atlantic, took a swipe at the post in a reference to the U.S.’s ongoing war with Iran.
”The Iranians are terrified,” he quipped on X.
The video shared by the Defense Department shows the Paul brothers posing and laughing with Hegseth, a former Fox and Friends Weekend host, while including clips from their address to troops in the Pentagon’s press room.
‘We just got the pleasure and the privilege of getting a tour of the Pentagon and what a cool experience,’ Logan remarked, while addressing service members (X/DeptofWar)
”We just got the pleasure and the privilege of getting a tour of the Pentagon and what a cool experience,” Logan remarked.
”Each of you matter,” Jake added. “Take this moment and be proud of yourselves for what you do.”
”This is the greatest country in the world, truly,” Jake continued. “We are blessed to be born here, come here, and we should never take that for granted.”
Hegseth, who has been criticized for his handling of the war with Iran and for strikes on alleged drug boats, avoided an impeachment vote on Thursday – the same day as the Paul brothers’ visit – when House Speaker Mike Johnson called an early recess.
Both Paul brothers have long been linked to Trump, with Logan hosting the now-president on his Impaulsive podcast back in 2024. Trump even endorsed Jake in a hypothetical run for political office.
The brothers have long been linked to Trump, with Logan even hosting the now-president on his podcast back in 2024 (X/@DeptofWar)
The brothers have disagreed on politics publicly, though, with Jake urging fans to boycott Bad Bunny’s performance at the Super Bowl halftime show because the artist is supposedly a “fake American citizen performing who publicly hates America.”
Logan responded by writing on X: “I love my brother, but I don’t agree with this.”
”Puerto Ricans are Americans & I’m happy they were given the opportunity to showcase the talent that comes from the island,” he added.