Joe Scarborough Mocks Pete Hegseth for ‘Bumper Sticker’ Remarks in Iran Interview: ‘What Does That Mean?’

Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough mocked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for speaking in “bumper sticker” platitudes about the potential of U.S. involvement in a conflict with Iran.

Hegseth was quizzed on the topic during an appearance on Fox News Monday night and offered several taglines to justify the administration’s current posture on the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.

The Defense Secretary said: “Peace through strength and America first. Our job is to be strong. We are postured defensively in the region to be strong, in pursuit of a peace deal. And we certainly hope that’s what happens here. And America first means we’re going to defend American personnel and American interests.”

At the top of Tuesday morning’s show on MSNBC, running back clips from Hegseth’s interview, Scarborough opened with a jab that Hegseth offered little in the form of substance. He mocked:

What did that mean? It’s like a couple bumper stickers. He could have just held up bumper stickers. I don’t understand what that means.

Israel – wait… We don’t know what Israel’s peace through… Jonathan Lemire, I’m confused. What was that? Is that like peace through strength? He’s talking about Israel? Was that an Israeli… Should that have, like, been in Hebrew? Peace through strength. America first. Israel, Netanyahu bombing Iran. I’m deeply confused. What was that?

What was the Secretary of Defense trying to say here? Can you interpret this for me? I’m just a caveman lawyer who stays up too late watching the Red Sox pitch shutouts and thinks things such as this. But go ahead.

Co-host Lemire jumped in to join in and added: “That was the Secretary of Defense speaking a lot of platitudes without a lot of meaning behind it. But it was part of an effort by the White House to combat some information last night, rumors swirling as President Trump cut short his stay at the G7 in Canada, rushing back to the White House. Reports out of Israel that the U.S. was actively engaging and being involved in the war, perhaps even attacking Iran.”

“The White House very quickly put out a statement saying, that’s not true. That’s not true. And Hegseth went on Fox News to say that. And it wasn’t clear what he meant,” he added.

Watch above via MSNBC.