What to Know
People are not happy with President Donald Trump after he failed to remove his hat at the dignified transfer ceremony for six fallen service members. Trump, his wife Melania, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and others attended the dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base. If you learned about the event via Fox News, you might’ve missed Trump’s white baseball cap, as the network shared hatless footage of him instead. Fox News later apologized for sharing the wrong footage, claiming it was an honest mistake.
Trump wore a white “USA” cap with gold lettering.
Of course, given that it’s customary to remove hats, Trump’s attire came across as disrespectful and offensive to many. Governor Gavin Newsom’s press office took to X to criticize the president for it, writing, “Take your hat off, you disgusting little man.” Newsom’s press office also accused Fox News of being “too embarrassed” to show the actual footage from the event. “FOX NEWS IS TOO EMBARRASSED TO PLAY THIS FOOTAGE TODAY,” the account claimed. “TAKE OFF THAT HAT AND SHOW SOME D— RESPECT.”
FOX NEWS IS TOO EMBARRASSED TO PLAY THIS FOOTAGE TODAY.
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) March 8, 2026
TAKE OFF THAT HAT AND SHOW SOME DAMN RESPECT. https://t.co/9CLllVr2nI
Other critics on X called Trump’s hat “disgusting” and “despicable.” One person wrote, “Those soldiers deserved full respect.” Someone else said, “Trump wore a casual baseball hat, not a uniform hat, for a ‘dignified’ transfer. Had the national anthem been playing he would have been asked to remove it…but he cannot give the fallen that dignity.”
Trump wore a white hat during the dignified transfer ceremony in Dover today when 6 fallen U.S. soldiers were returned from Trump’s war in Iran pic.twitter.com/QsjR6B5ufP
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) March 7, 2026
It doesn’t help that the hat is from Trump’s merch collection.
Although his baseball cap was not one of the traditional MAGA caps typically associated with his campaigns, the same hat that he wore—or one that looks just like it—is for sale online. In the Trump Organization’s online store, you’ll find the white hat with Trump’s “signature USA embroidered logo” in gold for $55.
As of March 9, the description for the hat notes, “Due to high demand, this hat may take an additional 7-10 days to process and then ship.” The Trump family has regularly been called out for grifting, and some people online wondered if Trump wore the hat during the event to draw attention to the product and sell more of them. “Shame,” one critic on Reddit wrote. “There’s nothing he won’t put a dollar value on.”
Regardless of whether he truly wanted to promote his merch, people still found it embarrassing and inappropriate. Plus, people speculated that if anyone other than Trump had done the same thing, no one would be making excuses for them. “Imagine the absolute s—storm if a Democrat showed up to a dignified transfer wearing their f—ing campaign merch,” another critic commented.
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