He's under fire and immense pressure politically from both sides of the aisle related to execution of the Iran war, but this is a stand-up leadership move by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth:
Hegseth awarded the soldier who reprimanded him and members of his staff at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier a Joint Service Commendation Medal on Thursday - coming the day after the high-profile and unusual incident at Arlington Cemetary.
"We love soldiers. We love standards. Well done, Specialist," Hegseth said in social media post. "Carry on Patriots."
CNN and other major outlets featured footage of the deeply awkward moment from the visit to the tomb paid by Hegseth and his entourage, but today it's quickly a very different story, per CNN:
A Pentagon official confirmed that Hegseth welcomed the 3rd Infantry Regiment, known as The Old Guard, to the Pentagon “where he proudly awarded Specialist Iglesias the Joint Service Commendation Medal for the execution of his duties at the Tomb of the unknown Soldier on November 11, 2026.”
As we detailed Wednesday, a guard of the elite US Army sentinel guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier reprimanded Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, his wife and a group of his senior advisers on Wednesday after some in the party laughed and chatted beside the memorial following the Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.
This was the moment the guard sounded off, as he's trained to do under any circumstances - even if there's a VIP visit:
The irony was of course that this was no usual 'dignitary visit' - but the soldier's very boss was in the group.
"Now, we should be clear, this is something that happens if people are at the tomb," CNN anchor Brianna Keilar told viewers, and CNN's Zachary Cohen added that anyone who breaks the silence "will get similarly reprimanded by the Army Sentinel who is guarding the tomb at the time."
At each changing of the guard, the relief commander "faces the spectators and asks them to stand and remain silent during the ceremony," according to the cemetery's own description of the ritual.
Soldiers of the 3rd US Infantry Regiment, The Old Guard, have stood watch over the tomb since April 6, 1948, and it has been guarded around the clock since 1937. Its earliest guards were there to keep visitors from climbing or stepping on the tomb, according to the cemetery's history of the memorial. The tomb holds an unknown American killed in World War I.
Within the ranks of the elite and small Old Guard command, this is likely to go down in the annals of history and lore, and this guy will be celebrated as a hero.