BREAKING: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Rocked by Plagiarism Scandal — Princeton Student Newspaper Uncovers “Startling Parallels” in Speeches and Writings

“They Thought No One Would Notice — But a Group of Students Did.”

Byline: Washington Bureau | May 13, 2025

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Just when Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth seemed to be weathering the political storms surrounding his controversial policies and media-centric public image, a new — and potentially career-defining — scandal has erupted at the highest levels of the Pentagon.

According to a bombshell investigation published today by The Princetonian Review, a student-run independent publication based at Princeton University, multiple speeches, op-eds, and public remarks made by Secretary Hegseth over the past two years include extensive, unattributed content lifted almost verbatim from academic sources and student-authored work.

The findings, compiled by a small team of undergraduate researchers, allege that sections of at least three of Hegseth’s public addresses — including a major speech delivered at the 2024 National Defense Forum — mirror scholarly work published in university journals and archives. In some cases, the students claim, paragraphs were copied nearly word-for-word, without citation, context, or acknowledgement.

“It started out as a curiosity — we thought we recognized some phrasing in one of his speeches from a paper we’d read last semester,” said Maya K., a senior and co-editor of the Review. “But the deeper we looked, the more we realized this wasn’t a one-time oversight. It looked systematic.”

The Paper That Could Shake the Pentagon

The students’ article, dramatically titled “Echoes of Authority: Uncovering the Academic Ghostwriting of Secretary Pete”, lays out their findings in meticulous detail. Through a side-by-side comparison of public statements by Hegseth and peer-reviewed academic articles, the Review identifies at least nine instances of textual overlap, ranging from defense policy analysis to rhetoric around national service.

In perhaps the most damning case, a 2023 op-ed attributed to Hegseth in The Wall Street Chronicle echoes, nearly verbatim, an honors thesis written by a Princeton international relations major in 2021 — a paper that had never been published beyond the university’s digital library.

“It’s not just a matter of style,” the students wrote. “It’s entire arguments, sequences of reasoning, and even obscure footnotes lifted and reworded slightly — if at all.”

Public Outcry and Mounting Political Pressure

The reaction has been swift and explosive. Within hours of the report’s publication, the article began trending on X (formerly Twitter) under the hashtag #PlagiarismPete, prompting waves of commentary from lawmakers, academics, and former military officials.

Senator Claire Brough (D-MA) issued a scathing statement:

“If Secretary Hegseth has indeed misrepresented others’ work as his own, it constitutes a grave breach of ethical conduct. The American people deserve leaders who are original in thought and honest in presentation.”

Even among Republican ranks, unease is growing. While some allies have attempted to downplay the report as “overblown” or “academically nitpicky,” others have called for a formal ethics review and even floated the possibility of resignation.

Behind closed doors, Pentagon insiders reportedly describe a mood of shock, damage control, and internal chaos. One senior official, speaking anonymously, noted:

“It’s not just embarrassing — it’s a credibility crisis. And it didn’t come from an enemy, a rival, or a journalist. It came from a group of undergrads.”

A Pattern of Image Over Substance?

Critics have long accused Hegseth — a former TV personality and vocal political figure — of prioritizing media optics over policy substance. His critics mockingly dubbed him the “Pentagon Princess”, a nickname that originally referred to his penchant for polished appearances and viral soundbites. Now, the term has taken on a darker, more ironic tone.

“If these allegations are true, it reinforces the perception that Secretary Hegseth is more concerned with performance than principle,” said Dr. Ellen Stroud, a professor of political ethics at Georgetown University.

The incident also raises broader questions about vetting, speechwriting, and intellectual integrity within government leadership. How did entire passages lifted from academic texts pass through communications teams, legal review, and press offices without triggering red flags? Or, worse — did anyone know and allow it anyway?

What Happens Next?

As of this writing, Secretary Hegseth has not released a statement. His office has declined interview requests, and the Department of Defense has only said it is “reviewing the matter internally.”

But with public trust on the line — and student journalists now at the center of a national controversy — pressure is building. Investigations may soon follow, both within the Pentagon and possibly before Congressional oversight committees.

Meanwhile, The Princetonian Review, a publication with fewer than 5,000 subscribers, has been overwhelmed with traffic. Their server briefly crashed just hours after publishing the exposé.

“We never expected this to go viral,” said Maya K. “But I guess it shows that the truth still matters — even if it starts in a campus library basement.”

Conclusion: A Defining Moment?

Whether the accusations lead to formal consequences or become another episode in the revolving door of Washington scandal remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: the story, and the questions it raises about authenticity, ethics, and accountability, isn’t going away anytime soon.

As political observers like to say — it’s not the mistake that ends a career. It’s how you respond.

And so far, Pete Hegseth has remained very quiet.