He may not have Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s job as the secretary of health and human services, but Pete Hegseth thinks he knows all there is to know about germs and the flu. So much so that he got rid of the four vaccine requirements for those in the U.S. Army and he even spoke about his own alleged experience with germs.
In a video posted on TikTok, Hegseth makes a wild claim about not washing his hands. He makes it sound funny and even whimsical that he is a chronic non-hand washer. Is there even such a thing? Apparently, Hegseth has a claim on that title himself, and he has no issue advertising that.
Pete Hegseth seems to think not washing your hands is a genuine flex.
@nowthisimpact This is the first time since the 1950s that the Pentagon has not had a mandatory flu vaccine policy, after Hegseth made it voluntary in April 2026. Now service members are paying the consequences.
♬ original sound – NowThis Impact
In the TikTok video, Hegseth jokes about not washing his hands. He laughs about
it, and seems to think there is nothing wrong with not washing your hands. Even though that is a clear line of defense against germs.
“I don’t think I’ve washed my hands for 10 years,” he says. “I don’t really wash my hands ever.”
This was a resurfaced clip from 2019 when the secretary of defense was still on Fox News as a host, but it still cuts pretty deep, considering his stance on flu vaccines in the military. According to the BBC, there’s even more to what Hegseth said at the time.
He also said, “Germs are not a real thing. I can’t see them, therefore, they’re not real.”
Hegseth later told USA Today that it was his attempt at a joke, but he also sort of doubled down on what he said.
“My half-hearted commentary to the point is, we live in a society where people walk around with bottles of Purell in their pockets, and they sanitize 19,000 times a day as if that’s going to save their life,” he told the outlet at the time. “I take care of myself and all that, but I don’t obsess over everything all the time.”
People don’t understand how it’s even possible.
Joke or not, people were pretty grossed out And even downright confused at the claims now that they’ve resurfaced. In the comments on TikTok, some users shamed Hegseth for even suggesting that he doesn’t wash his hands. Others joked that Hegseth acting like it’s a cool thing to say shows his true colors.
“The way he said that like he thought it was cool…,” a user commented.
Someone else wrote, “Even in the deepest depths of my depression, I still washed my hands.”
For other people, the idea of not washing their hands at all, or at least frequently, is just absurd. Especially when you consider day to day life. Yes, Hegseth meant it as a joke, but he later clarified that he does think people do too much when it comes to hand sanitizer, so where is the lie, exactly?
“I wash my hands like 10 times cooking one meal, damn,” another person commented on the video.
A commenter also wrote, “Sometimes I wash my hands bc they feel dirty, even if I recently washed them and didn’t really do anything to get them dirty….”
His admission was part of his plans to get rid of the flu vaccine for soldiers.
The head of the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, sketches of his portrait:
— S p r i n t e r (@SprinterPress) June 22, 2026
– I probably haven't washed my hands in 10 years. No, really, I don't wash my hands at all. I'm a walking vaccination for myself. And microbes are just nonsense. I can't see them, so they don't exist. pic.twitter.com/m8oDerprPw
In early 2026, Hegseth rolled out plans to end four vaccines as mandatory in the military. According to NewsNation in June 2026, though, an Air Force Base in Texas reported more than 160 cases of influenza among troops stationed there. Per the outlet, more than 36,000 troops move through this particular base.
“Medical professionals and Public Health officials have implemented mitigation measures to isolate and treat symptomatic trainees to reduce further exposure and continue to monitor the situation,” an Air Force spokesperson said in a statement. “Medical personnel are also monitoring trainees who were in close contact with sick members in case they become symptomatic.”
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