US President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is making headlines and a topic of discussion on social media because of his chest tattoo.

The former Fox News host has many tattoos on his body. Yet this particular one became the talk of the town again after 2021, when Hegseth was denied a job on the security team for President Joe Biden’s 2021 inauguration. Many high-ranking military officials believed the tattoo was an extremist symbol.

A few months ago, Hegseth himself claimed this in a podcast. “I was considered an extremist because of a tattoo of my National Guard unit in Washington,” Hegseth said on “The Shawn Ryan Show” podcast.

“Jerusalem cross tattoo, it’s just a Christian symbol,” he added.

The tattoo on Hegseth’s chest is an image of the Jerusalem cross with four small crosses on each corner of the Jerusalem cross. He has another tattoo on his bicep that says “Deus Vult”, meaning God wills it.

An X user, also a Democrat, shared the photo of Hegseth with the tattoo with the caption, “Trump Secretary of Defense… shall we pretend it’s not a swastika?”

Countering the post, another X user (and a Republican) wrote, “Democrats think this is a swastika.”

Hegseth is a veteran of the Army National Guard and, according to his website, has served in Afghanistan, Iraq, Guantanamo Bay and Cuba.

Before joining Fox News, he ran unsuccessfully for the Minnesota Senate in 2012.

In his coverage on the news channel, Hegseth has been an advocate for Israel.

In 2016, during an interview with the Jewish Press, Hegseth said, “This is not some mystical country that can be dismissed.” He was referring to biblical and historical sites in Israel.

Hegseth recently shared various controversial comments such as firing “woke generals” in the military and also spoke against women’s combat role in the military, The Times of India reported.

(With input from agencies)