"Hegseth’s brief tenure at the Pentagon has been dominated by his quivering inability to deal with any kind of challenge or discomfort. He’s tried to purge all military schools and libraries of any historical information that might makes him feel icky, such as reminders that racism exists or that slavery was a bad thing. I’m sure he can do push-ups, as he constantly brags. But the real test of someone’s mettle isn’t how ripped they are but whether they can handle the complexities of a world that hasn’t been sculpted to shield their egos. Even by MAGA standards, Hegseth is the most delicate of snowflakes. Indeed, Secretary Warfighter’s need for constant coddling is being ever more severely exposed as this scandal unfolds. As the Washington Post reported this week, Hegseth is now hiding behind the skirts of White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. She’s an accomplished liar, but has been reading carefully crafted statements that redirect the blame for the Sept. 2 killings to Bradley and insist, without offering any evidence, that everything Hegseth did was legal. “This is ‘protect Pete’ bull—,” as one anonymous military official told the Post. Operation “Protect Pete” seems like a fitting description of this guy’s entire career of evading accountability. Perhaps he should make that his next tattoo, so he can brag about how much the needle hurt while ducking any consequences that might truly sting."