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Public disputes concerning armed forces, defense departments, military policy, personnel standards, alliances, procurement, and civil-military institutions.

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Case

Did Pete Hegseth’s “this is real” post mock Canadian cadets?

On September 1, 2026, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reposted an image from the Vernon Cadet Training Centre showing a cadet receiving an award from an instructor, adding a Canadian flag and the words “this is real.” Canadian officials, a cadet organization, a Republican member of Congress, and George Clooney characterized the post as mocking, demeaning, or beneath the dignity of Hegseth’s office. The Pentagon stood by the post but did not specify what the caption meant.

SexismU.S. PoliticsUpdated

Statements

Garnett Genuis

Role at the time: Member of the Canadian Parliament

Challenged the characterization

Responding to

The people shown were participants in a youth cadet program, and the cadets themselves were not members of the Canadian military.

"Cadets do great work, and are not members of the military."
Why we used this label

The response challenges the factual characterization implied by using the cadet image to comment on Canadian military capability.

Pentagon defends Hegseth's post about Canadian cadet program (opens in a new tab)Paragraphs describing the original post, Pentagon response, and Garnett Genuis response.

People with useful coverage

Don Bacon

United States representative from Nebraska and retired Air Force brigadier general.

1 case and 1 statement

George Clooney

American actor, filmmaker, and political activist.

1 case and 1 statement

David Eby

Premier of British Columbia.

1 case and 1 statement

David McGuinty

Canadian politician serving as minister of national defence.

1 case and 1 statement

Mark Carney

Prime minister of Canada.

1 case and 1 statement

Pete Hegseth

United States secretary of defense and former television host.

1 case

Benjamin Netanyahu

Israeli politician serving as prime minister of Israel and leader of Likud.

1 case