Pete Hegseth appeared to think the ‘fog of war’ is quite literally a fog and was hilariously shot down in flames

Donald Trump’s secretary of defence, sorry, war Pete Hegseth has been showing yet again why he probably isn’t the best man for the job.

Any job, in fact.

Here is the embattled former Fox News man attempting to justify the deadly double strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat, killing two people who apparently survived the first attack and were clinging to the burning vessel when they were killed.

Hegseth blamed the fog of war, a phrase which he appears to think quite literally means fog.

Q: So you didn’t see any survivors after that first strike?

HEGSETH: I did not personally see survivors. The thing was on fire. This is called the fog of war. This is what you in the press don’t understand. You sit in your air conditioned offices and plant fake stories in the… pic.twitter.com/XjhqWw9GVh

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 2, 2025

And these people surely said it best.

1.

Does he think the “fog of war” is when you can’t see because of smoke?

— Krister Johnson (@KristerJohnson) December 2, 2025

2.

You don’t need to be a war college professor to know that “fog of war” is not actual smoke and fog from a fire, but it would be nice if the secretary of defense actually knew it https://t.co/RvnKSktrEi

— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) December 2, 2025

3.

“Fog of war” does not literally mean fog or smoke. https://t.co/zrCiFosyWN

— Steve Beynon (@StevenBeynon) December 2, 2025

4.

Air conditioned offices? Hey @PeteHegseth I have reported from war zones, disaster zones, riots, and more. I’ve been shot at, heard RPG’s whistle overhead, and seen dead bodies. On behalf of many of us who have put our lives on the line to report the news, go fuck yourself. https://t.co/QpdJUY2hhJ

— David Shuster (@DavidShuster) December 3, 2025

5.

Fog of war? The strike was ordered from a room at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. https://t.co/28HKI5Tgc6

— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) December 2, 2025

6.

Did he not sit in an air conditioned office watching it on a screen? pic.twitter.com/fqzI18XbKG

— Tam Canning (@TBabing) December 2, 2025

7.

Sit in our air conditioned offices? Finally I have to say it. How dare you sir. Close to every member of the press corps you despise has made multiple reporting trips to combat zones, been under fire, some reporters wounded, some killed. Some today still with PTS. Mr. Hegseth… https://t.co/rRN4ZkDPBb

— Barbara Starr (@bstarrreports) December 2, 2025

8.

I’d be more than happy to talk with @SecWar @PeteHegseth on what I don’t understand about the fog of war. https://t.co/h0Swy08d7g

— Jim LaPorta (@JimLaPorta) December 2, 2025

9.

Does he think “fog of war” is a literal obstruction of your vision?

— Adam (@ackwhacker) December 2, 2025