Snot as hair gel: Pentagon chief becomes an online laughingstock after wiping his nose

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has once again found himself at the center of fierce discussions and mockery on social media. The reason was a short video, filmed during the official's recent speech at a military base, which instantly went viral.

Pete Hegseth wipes his nose, then runs his hand through his hair pic.twitter.com/CXml9BpeER

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 10, 2026

The incident occurred on August 10 at Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina (recently renamed in honor of Senator Lindsey Graham following his passing). During his speech, Hegseth wiped his nose with his hand right in front of the cameras and then ran that same hand through his hair.

The episode immediately caught the attention of users on platform X (formerly Twitter). The video began to be actively commented on and mocked:

• "Now I know where this greasy guy gets all the grease for his hair," joked one user.

• "No problem, a lot of tough guys like to use snot instead of hair gel," another ironized.

• "And you thought he used gel," added another commenter, calling it "natural hair gel."

Many also drew attention to the minister's nervous appearance, describing him as "sweaty, flustered, and wildly anxious."

Against the backdrop of the new scandal, social media users immediately recalled Hegseth's scandalous statement from five years ago. During a 2019 broadcast of Fox & Friends, he made a shocking admission: "Honestly, I don't wash my hands at all... I vaccinate myself. Germs don't exist. I don't see them, so they don't exist."

Later, Hegseth claimed it was just a joke, but the fresh video involving his nose and hair has made critics doubt his hygiene habits once again.