Pete Hegseth embarrassingly declares 'I only speak American' to room full of foreign leaders

Pete Hegseth embarrassingly declares 'I only speak American' to room full of foreign leaders

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth proudly and embarrassingly declared that he only "speaks American" while in a room filled with leaders from Latin America.

View 4 Images Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth proudly and embarrassingly declared that he only "speaks American" while in a room filled with leaders from Latin America. (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Speaking at the inaugural meeting of the Shields of the Americas summit in Doral, Florida, President Donald Trump brought both Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio up on stage, where he championed both men and their dedication to American interests.

"Is he better in Spanish or in English? I think he's better in Spanish," Trump joked regarding Rubio's ability to speak multiple languages. "It's great. Pete, please," the president added while gesturing for the Secretary of Defense to take the podium.

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"Thank you, sir," Hegseth, 45, said into the microphone amid a smattering of applause. "Mr. President, I only speak American."

It should be noted, and possibly common knowledge, that "American" is not an official language, but rather a major dialect of the English language. Of course, many were beyond thrilled to slam the former Fox News presenter's comment.

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"We have the dumbest leaders ever," one person commented. "What a weird thing to be proud of," a second person added.

"There is no such thing as an American language, and there is no such thing as an American race," a third person added. A fourth user unloaded on the Trump official.

View 4 Images "Thank you, sir," Hegseth, 45, said into the microphone amid a smattering of applause. (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

"Jesus Christ, the way he’s looking around to make sure people are laughing at his little joke is pathetic," they wrote. As usual, some people jumped to Hegseth's defense.

"It’s America’s Language," one person said in defense. "Over 75% of America speaks English. The founding fathers spoke English. Every sign is in English. Yes, we speak 'American" aka English," a second added.

View 4 Images "Mr. President, I only speak American," Hegseth added to no applause or laughter (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

During the same event, the president commented, "I don't have time" to learn the languages of the countries represented." And so good that we got to know so many of you. I mean, we're so many. And I'd love to get to your countries at some point," commented Trump.

View 4 Images It should be noted, and possibly common knowledge, that "American" is not an official language, but rather a major dialect of the English language (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

"Marco loves going to your countries," President Trump joked, referring to Secretary of State Marco Rubio. "He's always at one of these countries."

"He likes your countries the best, okay? You know? Where are you? I'm in Chile. Oh, good. How's Chile doing? Good," Trump joked. "He likes it. He feels very calm. We all like him, right? It helps. He's got a language advantage over me."

"Because I'm not learning your damn languages," Trump joked to minimal laughter from the crowd. "I don't have time. I was okay with languages, but I'm not going to spend time learning your language."

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