Leave it to a lying Democrat to trivialize the momentous and amplify the absurd.
For instance, in a clip posted Wednesday to the social media platform X, CNN commentator Paul Begala, a former adviser to President Bill Clinton, claimed that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth had wasted millions of dollars on steak and lobster dinners.
Then, Begala acted incredulous when his fellow CNN commentator, resident conservative Scott Jennings, informed him that Hegseth had purchased that food for the troops heading off to war against Iran, prompting Jennings to say “Internet, do something” when Begala foolishly continued to argue that the troops had received no such meals.
Sure enough, the Internet did something.
One X user, for instance, posted the Begala-Jennings exchange interspersed with videos of troops eating steak and lobster.
“He has spent $15 million in one month for ribeye steaks,” Begala complained at the beginning of the video, “$6.9 million for lobster tail, $225 million for furniture. He has spent more in the month of September than most countries on Earth spend on their defense. All for himself. Lobster tails?”
Jennings could barely believe his ears.
“Do you believe the Secretary of Defense is personally eating all the lobster? It’s for the troops!” the conservative said.
“Oh, really, the troops are getting lobster?” Begala shot back.
Then came the first interspersed video of troops eating steak and lobster.
“How’s your steak and lobster?” one service member asked another.
“Bout right,” he replied. “D*** near decent.”
“How’s yours?” the first service member asked another of his comrades.
“I’m ready for war,” the second young man replied.
“We’re going to war,” the original service member said.
Then, the video returned to Begala and Jennings.
“You are so full of it,” Begala insisted. “You are so full of it.”
“You’re gonna get killed over this,” Jennings replied. “Internet, do something.”
At that point, another interspersed clip showed the original steak-and-lobster-eating service member licking his fingers and declaring that he had to go back for seconds.
CNN’s Paul Begala falsely claims Pete Hegseth purchased ribeye steaks and lobster tails for himself, not the troops.
Scott Jennings, “Internet do something.”
Here are the receipts: pic.twitter.com/VZ6j4j2sn2
— Thomas Hern (@ThomasMHern) March 12, 2026
Meanwhile, a second video showed a different service member enjoying crab legs.
Leftists losing their minds over Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon dropping millions on steak, lobster, and fruit baskets for troops.
Meanwhile, Biden blew billions housing illegals in 4-star hotels and feeding them on our dime.
I’ll take surf & turf for the warriors guarding my freedom… pic.twitter.com/W8X0aS80pa
— I Meme Therefore I Am 🇺🇸 (@ImMeme0) March 11, 2026
Of course, in the process of exposing Begala’s foolishness, we should not devolve into mindless war propagandists ourselves. After all, the troops in those videos hardly looked or sounded excited.
In fact, in the first video, the original service member said “We’re going to war!” with what sounded like a chuckle of disbelief.
Likewise, the second video featured text that included crying emojis and the words “we finna go to war.” The same video also included the question, “Why they serving crabs and steak?” accompanied by a Kleenex emoji, as if the service member interpreted the crabs and steak as akin to a condemned prisoner’s last meal.
In other words, the troops themselves recognized the seriousness of the situation into which their civilian leaders have placed them. We earnestly pray for those young men and women.
The broader point, of course, is that, had Begala wanted to criticize the war in some sincere way, he could have done so. Every war in U.S. history has had its detractors, some serious and some ludicrous. Either way, each time the republic has survived the free expression of its citizens’ views.
Instead, Begala chose the most absurd, transparently partisan angle possible. Hegseth bought millions of dollars’ worth of steak and lobster “all for himself”? Seriously? No wonder Jennings pounced.
The establishment media, of course, has made ridiculous, Begala-like claims for years. In fact, this week alone, CNN has appeared determined to turn that kind of gaslighting into an art form.
Here is one final thought, and this might easily go overlooked: Does Begala’s incredulous response to the (true) assertion that Hegseth bought steak and lobster for the troops mean that in similar circumstances, under a Democrat administration, civilian officials would not treat the troops half so well? The question merits consideration.
In any event, we cannot help but shake our heads at yet another example of CNN lunacy.
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