RFK Jr, 71, and Hegseth, 45, in fitness battle at Pentagon where Defense Secretary has decorated walls with pictures of himself
Amid the Trump administration's push to 'Make America Healthy Again,' the Cabinet secretaries participated in the so-called 'Pete and Bobby challenge': completing 100 push ups and 50 pull ups in 10 minutes. The pair posted the challenge in a social media video Monday.
Hegseth may have been trying to encourage a remake of America's health scene, but the footage also revealed he seems to have remade parts of the Pentagon, transforming his place of work to feel like home.
As the pair walked toward the Pentagon Athletic Center to complete the challenge, the two men passed by photos of Hegseth decorating the building's hallway walls.
One picture showed the defense secretary planting a kiss on the cheek of his third wife Jennifer Rauchet as she closes her eyes and smiles at his swearing-in ceremony in January.
Another photo seemed to capture Hegseth, President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Major General Trevor Bredenkamp saluting before laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in May.
'It's all about making America healthy again. We're gonna be fit, not fat,' Hegseth said, speaking directly to the camera inside what he called 'the bowels of the Pentagon.'
'We want recruits that are ready to go and challenged,' the defense secretary continued.
Kennedy then chimed in: 'Pete and I are going to do our part to encourage American youth to do this challenge.'
Hegseth, sporting gym garb, and Kennedy, clad in a t-shirt and jeans, both completed the challenge in under six minutes, according to the video.
The video then spliced footage of service members working out in the fitness center, set to high intensity music.
Kennedy then challenged Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy while Hegseth challenged Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine and his former Fox News colleague Will Cain to participate in the fitness test.
'We hope Americans will take this challenge and you'll pass it along so that we're ready to be fit the way we need to be healthy and to have a healthy fighting force,' Hegseth said.
The fitness challenge comes amid the Trump administration's push to 'Make America Healthy Again.' Last month, the president signed an executive order to revive the Presidential Fitness Test schoolchildren.
The president 'wants to ensure America's future generations are strong, healthy, and successful,' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement last month.
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