A joke made by Fox News host Jesse Watters about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s testosterone testing plan is being condemned on social media after many interpreted it as making light of sexual assault.
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Following Hegseth’s announcement of the plan, which would involve testosterone testing for military troops and hormone treatment for those with low testosterone, Watters said women “better be careful” around male members of the military.
“Yeah, I want these guys on it, but you know what’s gonna happen? The guys that don’t need it are gonna take it, to triple boost,” Watters said Thursday, laughing. “And then they’re gonna get out there, and women on base, you guys better be careful. Port calls, women in Asia, you better be careful, because these guys are gonna be wild animals and you better watch out.”
Watch Watters’ comments below:
It’s unclear exactly what Watters meant, but critics on social media widely took it to mean he was joking about male soldiers committing sexual assault.
Jesse Watters can make a joke of military rape on national television but those of us who want to talk about a resurgence of rape culture are the radicals? This is beyond disgusting. https://t.co/RPvgWZ3SeX
— Cheyenne Hunt (@CheyenneHuntCA) July 17, 2026
“Our troops are gonna rape y’all like crazy lol” is basically what he said https://t.co/dt7BhPbsw5
— meredith (@noyeahobviously) July 17, 2026
A Fox host joking about US soldiers raping women.
Well done Rupert Murdoch, well done. https://t.co/VafIi9ytQB
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) July 16, 2026
Ho ho, ha ha, watch out ladies you’re gonna get raped by US soldiers like untold millions of other women, ha ha, wocka wocka, comedy laugh laugh. https://t.co/GHm1kAiLRx
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— Caitlin Johnstone (@caitoz) July 16, 2026
men will openly say things like this and then call every rape victim a liar https://t.co/VFaLuxJ4Y5
— Kylie Cheung (@kylietcheung) July 17, 2026
Please tell me joking about rape has not become acceptable on your network, @FoxNews? https://t.co/7JpkjzEeEz
— Travis Akers 🇺🇸 (@travisakers) July 16, 2026
He’s talking about rape.
He’s laughing and joking and winking about women being prepared to be RAPED.In a sane fucking world, this scumbag wouldn’t have a job today.
— Jo (@JoJoFromJerz) July 17, 2026
Nothing funnier than rape. Absolutely hysterical. https://t.co/dUlnQVzDJI
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) July 17, 2026
The reality of sexual assault in the military is no laughing matter.
The found in 2024 there were 6,973 reports of sexual assault from service members that occurred during military service.
The report also found that 6.8% of active female service members and 1.3% of active duty male service members experienced at least one instance of unwanted sexual contact in 2023.
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.
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