Pete Hegseth caught spewing fake Bible verse - Another Day - Brian Tyler Cohen

BTC: Pete Hegseth thinks he's quoting the Bible, but it's a line from Pulp Fiction. At least when it comes to plagiarism, the man has great taste. This is just another day.

As everyone knows, if there is one thing members of Donald Trump's administration hold dear, it's their faith. And that was once again put on full display at yesterday's Pentagon prayer service.

[cut to video from Pentagon Prayer service]
Hegseth: So, the prayer is Caesar 25:17, and it reads, and pray with me, please.

The path of the downed aviator is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who in the name of camaraderie and duty shepherd the lost through the valley of darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to capture and destroy my brother.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Hold on. Uh, sorry. I hate to interrupt Pastor Hegseth here. It's just that this is all sounding oddly familiar. Where have I heard this Bible verse before?

[cut to video from Pulp Fiction]
Jules Winnfield: And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Oh my god, this cannot be happening.

[cut to dual screens of Hegseth and Jules Winnfield speaking in unison]
Hegseth/Winnfield: And you will know my call. My name is the one when I lay my vengeance upon thee.

[cut to studio]
BTC: I guess in Pete's mind, Sam Jackson was just another DEI hire. This is insane. Apparently, if you want to reach into a bag and find Hegseth's wallet, it's the one that says “DUMB MOTHER FUCKER” on it. [inset image of wallet displayed]

Yes, in his sermon at the Pentagon, which is a totally normal thing the Secretary of Defense does now, Pete Hegseth recounted a prayer that was actually a quote from Pulp Fiction, which doesn't just go against the narrative that he is a deeply religious man. It also feels like the completely wrong movie for him to quote. Let's be honest, The Hangover feels much more Hegseth’s speed.

But for an administration that holds itself up to be the Christianiest of Christians and chastises anyone who dares disagree with them as godless heathens, this has been by far the unholiest of weeks. First, the president lashes out at the Pope, then he depicts himself as Jesus, and now his Secretary of Defense is confusing Bible verses for movie dialogue. Is this going to be the next two and a half years? Weekly sermons from Pete Hegseth where he bows his head and quotes his favorite pieces of Scripture. It was then that the prophet William Madison proclaimed, "Stop looking at me, swan."

It would be one thing if this was merely a slip up from someone who claimed that they had a simple rudimentary knowledge of the Bible. But it is coming from a man who walks the halls of the Pentagon like he just got out of the seminary. Here he is just this morning invoking the good book to, let's say, bestow his teachings upon the sinful press corps.

[cut to video at Pentagon from MS NOW]
Hegseth: This past Sunday, I was sitting in church with my family, and our minister preached from the book of Mark, the third chapter. And in the passage, Jesus entered a synagogue and healed a man with a withered hand.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Oh, good thing Trump wasn't there to hear that or he would have been mighty jealous. But please continue.

[cut to video at Pentagon from MS NOW]
Hegseth: The Pharisees came to watch and as the Scripture reads, they came to see whether he Jesus would heal him or he would heal him on the Sabbath so that they might accuse him. You see, the Pharisees, the so-called and self-appointed elites of their time, they were there to witness, to write everything down, to report.

But their hearts were hardened. Even though they witnessed a literal miracle, it didn't matter. They were only there to explain away the goodness.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Wow. If only Jesus would have had his own news network back then to get the real truth out there. [inset image of Fox News logo]

It is wild that for years, conservatives have continually ranted and run on the idea that progressives were the ones at odds with good Christian values when just this morning, the leader of Christian values made it known which folks are really going against God's teachings.

[cut to video]
Pope Leo XIV: Jesus told us, "Blessed are the peacemakers, but woe to those who manipulate religion in the very name of God for their own military, economic, or political gain."

[cut to studio]
BTC: Well, come on. He could be talking about anyone, right?

[cut to video outside White House from NewsNation]
Trump: You know, the Pope could disagree with me on that, but certainly we're allowed to have that. Uh, I'm all about the gospel. I'm about it as much as anybody can be.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Yes, the money obsessed, grudge holding, immigrant-hating adulterer is about the gospel as much as anyone can be. The reality is I don't think what Pete Hegseth has said was actually an accident at all. We've all heard the way Donald Trump speaks for years.

[cut to video at White House]
Trump: I'm going to introduce the head of the CIA and he is a man who he's central casting. Okay, if we cast a movie, he's going to play the head of the CIA.

[cut to video]
Trump: I'm looking at this guy. He's central casting. He's even the glasses are perfect.

[cut to video from Fox News]
Trump: The troops and they are central casting. I love, I think to me it looks much more beautiful.

[cut to video from 2024 Pennsylvania campaign rally]
Trump: Got more guys and every one of them is like central casting too. Holy shit. I'm looking. They look like Arnold Palmer. They look like Arnold.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Pretty ironic that the man who's done the least for the gay community is constantly talking about how handsome men are and comparing them to his friend who had a huge penis.

The point is Donald Trump does not view his role as president as governing a nation. He sees it as making a movie. That's why he's constantly focused on the visuals. He doesn't care about anyone's actual credentials. He just needs them to look the part. He knows that this guy has no business crafting America's health policy. [inset image of RFK Jr.]

[cut to video from CBS Evening News]
Reporter: On Monday, the CDC, which he oversees, rolled back recommendations that all children be immunized against rotovirus, hepatitis, and the flu.

RFK Jr.: We're not taking vaccines away from anybody.

Reporter: But it is more difficult now for parents to get their children immunized for the flu, right? They can't just go to a pharmacy.

RFK Jr.: Yeah, you need to do a shared decision- making with your physician, which is how it would be. Fewer people will get the flu vaccine. Well, that may be and maybe that's a better thing.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Exactly. In the same way, less access to education can actually make you smarter. But for Trump, if we don't care about Chris Evans views on medicine, why should we care about RFK’s when his pecs look just as good on screen? And Donald Trump knows you can't have a Hollywood blockbuster without a little sex appeal.

[cut to video at 2024 campaign rally from The Young Turks]
Trump: We have a very special woman who's hot as a politician. She's uh she's doing an incredible job in South Dakota. She's the governor Kristi Noem.

Kristi Noem: We're going to win. We're going to win big. Thank you. Thank you.

Trump: Thank you very much. And you're not allowed to say it, so I will not. You know, you're not allowed to say she's beautiful, so I'm not going to say that.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Right. You'd never say that. In the same way, one would never say that the movie Coyote Ugly was a film full of attractive women. It is a legendary piece of cinema, honestly depicting the lives of struggling female bartenders who all coincidentally happen to have big boobs and tight shirts.

Donald Trump doesn't need Kristi Noem to tell the truth when her ICE agents kill innocent civilians or when someone has been wrongfully deported. He just needs her to be on time for her wardrobe fitting.

Trump doesn't want to hear about the rising cost of groceries, housing, and healthcare. That's somebody else's problem. He is focused on making a hit. And if that means he's got to barrel into the editing room and throw in some special effects, well, so be it.

[cut to video from local Fox affiliate]
Host: Over the weekend, former President Trump shared a fake AI generated video on social media showing former President Barack Obama being arrested in the Oval Office.

[cut to video after Minnesota church riots]
Host: The Trump administration posted an altered picture of her crying, something that never happened.

[cut to video from ABC News]
Trump: He had MS-13 on his knuckles.

Reporter: He insists that deported immigrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia has MS13 tattooed on his knuckles. MS13 was pretty obviously photoshopped.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Hey, nobody said all the special effects were going to be good after all, he's the president of the United States. And just like a movie, Trump knows that even if your film is testing like shit, even if you're way behind schedule, and even if you've gone wildly over budget, you still need to market the hell out of your picture.

[cut to multiple video clips from several movies]
Wake up, Daddy.
Welcome home, son.
Strength honor.
Strength and honor.
What will you do without freedom?
Maverick's inbound.
You can't conceive of what I'm capable of.
Finishing this fight.
Yeah, I'm thinking I'm back.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Wow. When our commander-in-chief puts all those awesome clips into his footage of his disastrous war, you almost forget what a terrible decision he's made.

Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump can post as many photos of them with or as Jesus as they want. They can carry around as many Bibles as they can fit into their pockets and quote as many pieces of real or fake scripture as to convey their devotion to the Lord, but everybody can plainly see that it is all bullshit. Their actions tell a completely different story and all they're doing is proving what they really look like.

[inset video from Pulp Fiction]
Jimmie Dimmick: Dorks. They look like a couple of dorks.

[cut to studio]
BTC: Exactly.