#sentinel
3 entries with this tag
On Veterans Day, an Army Sentinel Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Had to Publicly Reprimand Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's Own Entourage — His Wife and Senior Aides — for Talking and Laughing During a Group Photo, Calling Out That "All Visitors Will Maintain an Atmosphere of Silence and Respect at All Times"; the Man Who Lectures the Entire Military About Reverence and Standards Had His Group Shushed at the Most Sacred Site of American Military Remembrance
On Veterans Day, November 11, 2026, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery for a wreath-laying — part of the day's solemn observances, which President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump also attended. After Hegseth's group posed for a photo near the Tomb, a member of the entourage was heard talking and laughing as they walked away, and the Army sentinel on duty — a member of the elite Tomb Guard that watches over the memorial around the clock — loudly reprimanded the group, calling out the standing admonition that "all visitors will maintain an atmosphere of silence and respect at all times." The group traveling with Hegseth included his wife, Jennifer Hegseth, and senior aides, among them chief of staff Ricky Buria. The video circulated widely and was authenticated by fact-checkers. The Pentagon did not dispute it: chief spokesman Sean Parnell said the sentinel "correctly and respectfully reminded everyone to maintain decorum." In fairness, the footage does not establish who in the group made the noise, and it is not clear Hegseth himself was the one laughing. But the episode is a failure of a particular and pointed kind. This is the defense secretary who has spent his tenure lecturing the entire armed forces about reverence, standards, warrior ethos, and respect — who dressed down generals over grooming and bearing, who wraps his Pentagon in the language of the sacred. And it was his entourage, at the most hallowed ground in American military memory, that a junior soldier had to tell to be quiet.
The Secret Service Told Trump Not to Fly His $400M Qatari Air Force One Out of a War Zone — It Was "Rushed" Into Service, Lacks the Command-and-Control "Flying Situation Room," Missile Defenses, and Mid-Air Refueling, So He Left Turkey on the Old Plane and Ordered Iran Strikes From It
One week after Trump took his triumphant maiden flight on the new Qatari-gifted Air Force One, the Secret Service advised him not to fly it out of a war zone. Departing the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey on July 8, 2026 — with the Iran ceasefire collapsing and Trump calling himself Iran's "No. 1 target" — the president left on the original Kennedy-era Air Force One and sent the Qatari jet ahead, empty, to a U.S. base in England. Four U.S. officials told CNN the switch was driven by security concerns tied to the escalating Iran conflict; the New York Times reported the Secret Service urged the swap. The reason: the $400 million gifted Boeing 747-8, hurried into service in roughly 18 months instead of the usual years, lacks the original plane's command-and-control systems — the "flying situation room" that lets a president receive classified briefings, communicate securely, and order military strikes — as well as missile-defense systems, mid-air refueling, and hardening against electromagnetic-pulse attack. It mattered immediately: it was aboard the old plane, mid-flight, that Trump authorized fresh strikes on Iran. "This plane was built for aesthetics, not mission," a former national security official said. The military and Secret Service viewed the Qatari jet as having been "rushed." The Air Force insisted the jet is "safe, secure" but conceded that "several highly complex engineering modifications required for the final aircraft were intentionally excluded from the Bridge aircraft." Trump offered a cascade of conflicting explanations — the troops wanted to "tour the Aircraft," "for old time's sake," "there wasn't a security concern" — before telling reporters who'd been ordered to lower their window shades on takeoff that it was "because you're probably on a dangerous flight." His communications director said they deploy "every tool at our disposal — including distraction and misdirection." The vanity jet that was diverted nuclear-missile money to build, accepted over the Emoluments Clause, and paraded as a triumph could not be trusted to carry the commander in chief during the one crisis it was theoretically there for.
Trump's New Air Force One Is a $400 Million Qatari Royal Jet Converted with $934 Million Diverted from Nuclear Missile Funds — It Has Fake Books, Gold Fixtures, and Will Become His Personal Property — Congress Was Never Asked, Pence Called It a "Bad Idea," and the Senate Called It an Illegal Emolument
Trump took his maiden flight on the new Air Force One — a Boeing 747-8 previously used by the Qatari royal family, gifted to the United States by the government of Qatar. The plane is worth $400 million before modifications. The cost of converting it was hidden inside the classified Sentinel nuclear missile modernization program: the New York Times reported $934 million was transferred from the missile project — which is already 81% over budget — to retrofit a luxury jet for presidential vanity. The Air Force has declined to disclose the actual modification cost, citing classification, while Secretary Meink claims it was "less than $400 million." The interior features gold light fixtures, plush carpets, lie-flat seats, wood paneling, Trump's preferred navy-and-red color scheme, and fake books — Karoline Leavitt's Instagram video accidentally revealed shelves lined with decorative volumes simply labeled "library." The plane will become Trump's personal property after his term, transferred to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation at Air Force expense. The Constitution's Emoluments Clause prohibits accepting foreign gifts without congressional consent. Congress was never asked. A Senate resolution formally declared it an "illegal emolument." Mike Pence called it a "bad idea," noting Qatar "supports Hamas" and "financed pro-Hamas protests." Ben Shapiro called it "shady behavior." Meanwhile, the two actual new Air Force One planes Boeing was contracted to build in 2018 for $3.9 billion are now $6.2 billion and four years behind schedule — with delivery pushed to 2028 or later. Trump's original paint scheme for those planes (dark red and blue) was rejected because the dark colors would cause engine overheating. He revived the scheme anyway. The Air Force has not explained how the thermal concerns were addressed.