NOTE: FOR MONDAY MORNING
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) just reminded everyone why Democrats are losing the messaging war. In what might be the most awkward attempt at political wit this year, Jeffries recorded himself delivering what he apparently thought was a clever takedown of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t.
Picture a middle schooler trying to land an insult at the lunch table—that’s basically what happened when Jeffries attempted to rebrand “DEI” as “dumb effing individuals” in his attack on Hegseth. That’s right the House Minority Leader, one of the most powerful Democrats in Congress, thought his comment was the kind of zinger that would go viral. Instead, it went cringe.
“The DEI hires in the Trump administration, like Pete Hegseth, the so-called Secretary of Defense, dumb effing individuals, continue to try to test our resolve and cancel our history,” Jeffries said in a video shared to X.
Senate Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries gets all dressed up to go on a social media rant about “so-called Secretary of Defense” Pete Hegseth.
“These DEI hires in the Trump Administration, like Pete Hegseth, the so-called Secretary of Defense — dumb effing individuals — continue… pic.twitter.com/teYyYwUCZ2
— DeVory Darkins (@devorydarkins) April 13, 2025
The irony is rich. Here we have the leader of a party that lives and dies by the DEI religion suddenly using “DEI hires” as a slur. The same Democrats who spent years insisting that DEI is the highest moral good are now tossing around the term like it’s a smear when it suits their narrative. So which is it? Is DEI a noble pursuit, or is it code for incompetence when someone like Hegseth is in the crosshairs? If you needed more proof that the left’s commitment to its pet causes is purely performative, Jeffries just handed it to you.
Making matters worse, Jeffries built his entire rant on a foundation of misinformation about the Naval Academy’s book relocation policy. He breathlessly claimed the Academy was banning books about slavery, civil rights, and the Holocaust while keeping Hitler’s works. That’s cute, but it’s also completely false.
The reality? The books were simply moved to a different location in response to President Trump’s executive orders on DEI policies. They weren’t banned, burned, or whatever other dramatic scenario Jeffries conjured up for his social media performance.
Hegseth’s response on “Sunday Morning Futures” was the coup de grâce.
“It’s astonishing, not surprising,” he said. “Of course, they don’t like the fact that we’re ripping DEI out of the military and making it colorblind and merit-based. If their whole strategy is, I don’t even know how long the video was, didn’t see it, minute long videos on TikTok to call us names while we secure the southern border, kick out Chinese influence, provide the warrior culture inside our military, that’s why they lost in a historic fashion to President Trump last time, and their future looks bleak as well.”
Pete Hegseth hit back at Hakeem Jeffries’ “Dumb Effing Individuals” jab, calling it proof of how far Dem leadership has fallen. He defended cutting DEI from military training, focusing instead on strength, merit, and national defense. What do you think?#DOD #PeteHegseth #DEI… pic.twitter.com/uIR9KhSXpB
— Fog of Unknowns (@FogOfUnknowns) April 13, 2025
Make no mistake about — while Jeffries was busy workshopping his dad jokes, Hegseth was actually doing his job. Commander Tim Hawkins had to waste time explaining that the books weren’t banned but simply relocated to a different area where they’re “not immediately available.” But why let facts get in the way of a good tantrum?
This is just another example of Democratic leadership trying desperately to manufacture outrage and failing spectacularly. Between Jeffries’ amateur-hour comedy routine and his party’s continued reliance on false narratives, it’s becoming increasingly clear why they’re having trouble connecting with voters.
Next time, perhaps Jeffries should spend less time working on his TikTok material and more time developing actual policy arguments. But then again, that would require having real positions to defend.
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