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groundloop

(13,768 posts)
Fri Mar 13, 2026, 12:54 PM 6 hrs ago

Irate Pete Hegseth claims Iran's leaders are 'rats' in hiding and demands a 'patriotic press' rewrite headlines

Source: The Independent

A visibly irate Pete Hegseth has compared Iran’s leaders to “rats” in hiding and urged a "patriotic press” to rewrite headlines about the deadly, costly and escalating war.

“The U.S. is decimating the radical Iranian regime’s military in a way the world has never seen before,” the defense secretary boasted at a Friday morning press briefing. “We said it would not be a fair fight, and it has not been.”

[....]

Hegseth began the Friday morning briefing by berating the press, specifically targeting ABC News and CNN, and maintained a tone of barely concealed contempt throughout.

“Another example of a fake headline I saw yesterday: ‘war widening,’” he said. “Here’s a real headline for you, for an actual patriotic press: ‘Iran shrinking, going underground.’”

Read more: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/pete-hegesth-iran-plane-crash-b2937931.html

14 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Irate Pete Hegseth claims Iran's leaders are 'rats' in hiding and demands a 'patriotic press' rewrite headlines (Original Post) groundloop 6 hrs ago OP
A barking dog is a nervous dog. littlemissmartypants 6 hrs ago #1
Maybe he is reacting to a headline I saw today gab13by13 6 hrs ago #2
Quiet, Piggy orangecrush 6 hrs ago #3
They would all Timewas 6 hrs ago #4
I understand why he's confused. Baitball Blogger 6 hrs ago #5
Weary or wary? - two different things GenThePerservering 2 hrs ago #14
Kegsbreath is the "Fool Of War". nt Exp 6 hrs ago #6
Hess....I mean Hegseth should go join the Iranian government as he sounds a lot like them. cstanleytech 6 hrs ago #7
When you fuck up so bad it can't be fixed blame someone else. Then deny, deny, deny. twodogsbarking 6 hrs ago #8
The press is not required to be patriotic. intheflow 5 hrs ago #9
If you're so fricking brave liberalgunwilltravel 5 hrs ago #10
A rat turd badmouthing the rats. twodogsbarking 5 hrs ago #11
You want to have some influence over the press, fucker? LudwigPastorius 5 hrs ago #12
Everything must be going swell. City Lights 5 hrs ago #13

gab13by13

(32,035 posts)
2. Maybe he is reacting to a headline I saw today
Fri Mar 13, 2026, 01:04 PM
6 hrs ago

from a pro-Russian news outlet. It claimed that Russia warned Iran about the military strike but Khamenei chose not to hide but chose to be a martyr.

Remember, it was a pro-Russian reporter.

Timewas

(2,726 posts)
4. They would all
Fri Mar 13, 2026, 01:22 PM
6 hrs ago

Every one of the so called leaders here would be in deep bunkers shaking in their boots under the same circumstances...

Baitball Blogger

(52,221 posts)
5. I understand why he's confused.
Fri Mar 13, 2026, 01:26 PM
6 hrs ago

The Playbook use to be simple. There were some things that Americans were brainwashed to believe. Like, you couldn't criticize a president when he was outside of the country; or, America comes together in the face of a common enemy, which is what they used against us when Bush II decided to attack Iraq. They managed to hit us over the head with a shovel claiming we had a lack of patriotism. But, it doesn't seem to be working for them, now. Does it?

So Pete is confused and demanding automatic respect because, in his mind, we are at war. But what he forgot is that the MAGAs were clear. They were weary of a long term war. Especially when one was started without substance, other than to disguise the fact that the president is a pedophile.

intheflow

(30,152 posts)
9. The press is not required to be patriotic.
Fri Mar 13, 2026, 01:59 PM
5 hrs ago

Why is this regime so ignorant of the First Amendment?

liberalgunwilltravel

(1,186 posts)
10. If you're so fricking brave
Fri Mar 13, 2026, 02:12 PM
5 hrs ago

Last edited Fri Mar 13, 2026, 05:52 PM - Edit history (1)

Why aren't you the tip of the spear? Or doesn't you makeup room travel well?

LudwigPastorius

(14,599 posts)
12. You want to have some influence over the press, fucker?
Fri Mar 13, 2026, 02:33 PM
5 hrs ago

Go back to being a blathering FOX shithead.

Otherwise shut up, because we still have a 1st Amendment.

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