AOC humiliates Pete Hegseth after tweet
congratulating him on not leaking Iran
attack information

Isabel Keane
Mon, June 23, 2025 

THE INDEPENDENT

Praise poured in for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after he didn’t leak U.S. plans to bomb Iranian nuclear sites – a low standard Democrats were quick to mock.

Newsmax host Todd Starnes applauded Hegseth’s efforts on X, writing, Not a single leak. Well done, @SecDef” seemingly referencing the so-called “Signal-gate” scandal.

The incident saw the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic added to a group chat with national security officials, including Hegseth, as a drone strike got underway against Houthi rebels in Yemen.


Critics of President Donald Trump’s administration, led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, held back any praise for the embattled Defense Secretary.

“This is like applauding a grown man for being able to wipe their behind,” the New York Democrat wrote on X. “Not exactly a vote of confidence.”

Democrats were quick to mock the praise Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth received after he didn’t leak the U.S. plans to bomb Iranian nuclear sites this weekend. (Getty Images)

Other X users were quick to join in on the mocking, with one person adding, “LOL. He didn’t pee himself either! WHAT A BIG BOY!”

“The signal app was down,” another social media user joked.

“This is such an embarrassing new standard to try to celebrate,” another person said.

Another user quipped: “MAGA praising Pete for not leaking war plans again is like giving a toddler a medal for not eating glue – congratulations, he finally did the bare minimum.”

Hegseth described the U.S. strikes on three major Iranian nuclear sites as an “incredible and overwhelming success,” adding that they “devastated the Iranian nuclear program.”

The strikes have also drawn swift threats of retaliation from some Iranian leaders, including the country’s army chief, who warned the strikes have given Tehran a “free hand” to “act against U.S. interests and its army.”

UN officials on Monday said “very significant damage” was caused in the U.S. bombardment, which followed strikes from Israel just days before.

Israel launched airstrikes on Iran earlier this month on June 13, after accusing it of being days way from developing a nuclear weapon. The attack kicked off a long-feared war that the U.S. directly entered over the weekend.

Ocasio-Cortez also called the strikes “grounds for impeachment,” which sparked backlash from the likes of former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.

AOC Brutally Bursts Trump World Bubble On Pete Hegseth’s ‘No Leak’ Praise

Lee Moran

Mon, June 23, 2025 

HUFFPOST

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth received praise from President Donald Trump’s supporters for not leaking U.S. plans to bomb Iranian nuclear sites ahead of time, prompting ridicule from critics at what they saw as a laughably low bar for congratulations.

Newsmax host Todd Starnes was among those who applauded the former Fox News personality, who earlier this year was embroiled in the so-called Signal-gate scandal after The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a group chat discussing strikes in Yemen.

“Not a single leak. Well done, @SecDef,” Starnes wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) led the mockery of such applause.

“This is like applauding a grown man for being able to wipe their behind,” she wrote on X. “Not exactly a vote of confidence.”

Others echoed the sentiment: