Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, pictured at a press conference in late November, is facing investigation for US attacks on alleged drug boats and a parody of a children’s book cover.
Felix Leon/AFP via Getty Images
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Felix Leon/AFP via Getty Images
The publisher of the Franklin children’s book series has rebuked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after posting a meme of an anthropomorphic turtle firing at drug boats.
Hegseth’s Sunday social media post showed Turtle, dressed in tactical gear, standing on a helicopter and aiming a machine gun at one of several boats in the water below. It is designed to look like a version of a children’s book, but is titled Franklin targets narco terrorists,
“For your Christmas wish list…” Hegseth wrote in the caption, as he faces increasing scrutiny over the legality of attacks on a suspected drug boat in the Caribbean in early September.
On Monday, Toronto-based publishing house Kids Can Press issued a statement defending Franklin, calling her “a beloved Canadian icon who has inspired generations of children and stands for kindness, empathy and inclusivity.”
It added, “We strongly condemn any derogatory, violent or unauthorized use of Franklin’s name or image, which directly contradicts these values.”
Franklin, who usually wears a red neckerchief and baseball cap (not a ballistic helmet), has delighted children since the beginning of his book series in 1986 — which includes dozens of titles. franklin goes to school And franklin wants a pet – and an animated TV series a decade later.
It’s unclear why Hegseth – who is a father and stepfather to seven children – chose the Turtles out of all the characters, however. franklin Book covers have inspired some popular parodies in the past.
Asked for comment, chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told NPR over email: “We doubt that Franklin wants to join The Turtle drug cartel… or appreciate the kindness and sympathy of narco-terrorists.”
Many Democrats immediately condemned the post, as well as the larger controversy behind it.
Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, who has sparred openly with the Pentagon in recent weeks, told reporters that this meme is just one reason why the Defense Secretary should be fired, calling him “not a serious person.”
“He’s in the National Command Authority for nuclear weapons and he’s killing Turtles with rocket-propelled grenades,” Kelly said.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, speaking on the floor Monday, called Hegseth a “national embarrassment” and described the Franklin meme as a “sick parody.”
“Tweeting a meme in the midst of a potential armed conflict is something that no serious military leader would ever think about,” Schumer said. “The sole purpose of this tweet is to remind the world that Pete Hegseth is not up to the task.”
Questions have been raised on the September incident
Hegseth was already on the hot seat, facing a bipartisan investigation and congressional questions about what happened on September 2 – and whether any war crimes were committed, when the US launched the first of more than 20 attacks on alleged drug ships.
US officials have described their targets as “narcoterrorists” from Latin America, although they have not released information about who was on board those boats or evidence that they were carrying drugs.
Trump administration officials originally described the first attack as a single attack on a Venezuelan ship that killed 11 alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang. But in the coming weeks, as the US has shared salacious videos about the increasing number of attacks on ships in the Caribbean and Pacific, more questions and revelations have emerged about who started them.
last week, Washington Post It was reported – and a source confirmed to NPR – that Hegseth gave verbal instructions to kill the boat’s survivors in a second attack. According to a Pentagon manual, attacking “wounded, sick or shipwrecked” combatants violates the laws of war.
Hegseth denied those reports as “fabricated, inflammatory and defamatory”, saying that US operations in the Caribbean “are lawful under both US and international law… and are approved by the best military and civilian lawyers up and down the chain of command.”
But that didn’t satisfy lawmakers, many of whom — on both sides of the aisle — raised concerns about a potential war crime. Over the weekend, both the House and Senate Armed Services Committees launched investigations into the incident.
Then, on Monday, the White House confirmed that a second attack had taken place, but attributed the direction to another military leader.
White House press secretary Carolyn Leavitt said that Hegseth had authorized Admiral Mitch Bradley – who led Joint Special Operations Command at the time – to carry out the strikes, adding that Bradley “acted well within his authority and within the law.” Later that day, Hegseth tweeted in “100% support” of Bradley and his war-related decisions.
But a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly has since disputed the White House account, telling NPR’s Tom Bowman that Hegseth had issued orders for “two strikes” to “sink the boat” and two additional strikes to “sink the boat.”
For his part, President Trump has defended Hegseth but distanced himself from the incident. Asked by reporters Sunday night whether he would have any objection to Hegseth ordering a second strike, Trump said, “He said he didn’t, so I don’t have to make that decision.”
Admiral Bradley, who was promoted to commander of US Special Operations Command a month after the incident, is due to provide a classified briefing to lawmakers on Thursday.
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