A man who in 2021 was a member of the same National Guard unit as Piet HegsethPresident-elect Donald Trump as Secretary of Defense confirmed that he had sent a letter to his superiors warning that a tattoo Hegseth wears indicated he posed a potential “insider threat.” Inauguration of President Biden.
The Associated Press reported that 12 members of the US National Guard were barred from helping secure Mr Biden’s 2021 inauguration after vetting by the US military and the FBI. They appeared to have made extremist statements in messages or text messages or to have had ties with right-wing militias. In an interview with podcaster Shawn Ryan, Hegseth said he was one of the National Guard members excluded from securing the inauguration.
“I was deemed an extremist because of a tattoo from my National Guard unit in Washington, DC, and my orders were revoked to guard Biden’s inauguration… a cross tattoo in Jerusalem that is just a Christian symbol,” he told Ryan .
But that’s not the tattoo his fellow guard, DeRicko Gaither, pointed out to his superiors. He told CBS News, “When I looked at the photos, in one photo he had the Jerusalem cross tattoo, which I thought was no big deal.”
“In the next photo he had on his inner bicep, he had a bicep that said ‘Deux Vult,’” Gaither said. ‘I looked it up and that tattoo had links to extremist groups. So I sent it to my leadership. I have attached the photo attachment and the Army policy on tattoos. I said I just want you to know what’s going on. response that Pete had been removed from the mission.”
He said in his letter, which CBS News obtained: “The white supremacist use of #Deus Vult and a return to medieval Catholicism is an appeal to the myth of a white Christian (i.e. Catholic) medieval past that represents the real demographic wants to ignore developments and theological state of Catholicism today.”
He added: “Deus Vult has enjoyed popularity among members of the alt-right because of his perceived representation of the clash of civilizations between the Christian West and the Islamic world.”
Citing a military statute that bans extremist tattoos, Gaither said the Deus Vult tattoo “falls along the lines of Insider Threat.” The Associated Press and Reuters first reported Gaither’s warning letter to the National Guard.
“Deus Vult” is the Christian motto referring to divine providence. It originated as the battle cry of the Crusaders. But experts on domestic violent extremism say the Latin phrase has also been adopted by some members of the far right in recent years.
For example, Mauricio Martinez Garcia, the shooter behind the 2023 mass shooting in Allen, Texas, had a “Deus Vult” tattoo in addition to neo-Nazi tattoos, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The group also says the phrase is “widely used as an anti-Muslim symbol.”
Trump’s transition team did not respond to a request for comment. Vice President-elect J.D. Vance said of X of the AP story: “They’re attacking Pete Hegseth for having a Christian motto tattooed on his arm. This is disgusting anti-Christian bigotry.” Hegseth reshared Vance’s post, noting, “They can target me – I don’t care – but these types of attacks on Christians, conservatives, patriots, and everyday Americans will stop at DJT’s DoD on DAY ONE.”
The National Guard declined to comment on whether Hegseth was removed from the details and why, issuing a statement that said only: “Major Peter Hegseth joined the DC Army National Guard on June 6, 2019 and remained member of the DCNG until March 31, 2021. He held M-Day status, traditional drill service member, and was available for duty during the 2021 presidential inauguration if needed.
Olivia Rinaldi contributed to this report.
