CNN contributor Paul Begala absurdly claimed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth personally blew $15 million on ribeye steak and $6.9 million on lobster tail in September 2025, as part of a $93.4 billion Pentagon end-of-fiscal-year “use-it-or-lose-it” spending surge flagged by watchdog Open the Books. In reality, the Pentagon provided a good meal to the troops before Operation Epic Fury began.
Responding to Begala, Scott Jennings mocked this absurd claim, jokingly asking for commentators online to find the receipts and show Begala why he was so wrong, saying, “He can’t eat 6.9 million dollars of lobster himself… internet, do something”. Conservatives rightly blasted Begala’s commentary as dishonest media smears: the meals were traditional morale-boosting “steak and lobster” dinners for troops before combat, a decades-old military tradition.
In any case, Paul Begala began his commentary on the situation by claiming, “He has spent $15 million in one month for ribeye steak, 6.9 million for lobster tail, $225 million for furniture, all for himself. He spent more in the month of September than most countries on earth have in their defence.”
Firing right back, Scott Jennings said, “Well, he can’t eat 6.9 [ million dollars of lobster himself.] … internet, do something about this,” as Begala vociferously but vainly claimed that this was a major waste of money and indicated that the war in Iran was about to escalate.
As could be expected, conservatives explained what was really going on and blasted the entitled liberal in the comments. “I mean dude, they have to be lying on purpose. I’m sorry, I refuse to believe CNN and its contributors are this incompetent,” one user responded. The account that posted the initial clip answered, “I know right… Begala has advised Presidents and world leaders… is he actually this dumb?”
Watch the clip here:
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Responding to this fake scandal, one user noted, “Leftists didn’t blink when Democrats blew billions on illegal immigrants. But when Hegseth feeds troops steak and lobster, suddenly it’s treated like a crime. Pick a lane, clowns. 🦞🥩”
Adding context, another explained the hypocrisy, “🔥🚨BREAKING: Pete Hegseth’s Department of War is facing backlash from liberals after reportedly buying $22 mil worth of steak and lobster near the end of the spending year.”
“Liberals are attempting to criticize the DOW but are disregarding the fact that our government pays for steaks and lobsters for soldiers getting ready to deploy. This is media manipulation. Our troops deserve a great meal before taking off to serve,” the same user noted.
Jumping on the bandwagon, failed Democrat Jasmine Crockett alleged, “While they were busy cutting SNAP and health care for working families, Pete Hegseth spent $2 million on King Crab, nearly $7 million on Lobster Tails, and nearly $100,000 on a Grand Piano in the month of September.”
“This is where your taxpayer dollars are going. Isn’t this supposed to be the Administration that’s targeting “waste, fraud, and abuse”?!? Make it make sense,” the dishonest Congresswoman, who recently failed to secure a senate seat, claimed.
Featured image from embedded video