Why is children's book publisher of Franklin the Turtle going after Pete Hegseth?

A Canadian children’s book publisher has slammed Pete Hegseth for his “violent” use of the likeness of a beloved book character in controversial social media posts.

Kids Can Press is an award-winning publisher of kids books. They publish Franklin the Turtle – a “beloved Canadian icon”.

In a statement, the publisher called out US Secretary of the Defense Hegseth after he used Franklin’s likeness in an AI-generated image showing the friendly turtle in military gear firing a rocket launcher from a helicopter and blowing up boats in the ocean.

The mock book cover was accompanied by the title: “Franklin Targets Narco Terrorists”.

Hegseth captioned the post, “For your Christmas wish list…”.

The post comes amid severe scrutiny around the legality of a second strike conducted to kill survivors of a wrecked Venezuelan boat that the US alleges was involved in drug smuggling.

“Franklin the Turtle is a beloved Canadian icon who has inspired generations of children and stands for kindness, empathy, and inclusivity,” Kids Can Press said in a statement.

“We strongly condemn any denigrating, violent, or unauthorized use of Franklin’s name or image, which directly contradicts these values.”

They were not the only ones to slam Hegseth over his use of the imagery.

“There is something very wrong with the secretary of defense,” someone argued.

Another wrote: “The idea of FRANKLIN having to disavow you.”

Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove posted: “You can’t s**tpost your way out of accountability for potential war crimes.

“Leave Franklin out of this. You better get ready to comply with some subpoenas.”

Another Senator called Hegseth “a national embarrassment”.

Someone else argued: “There are two overwhelming characteristics of the Trump Administration: malice and incompetence.

“@PeteHegseth is a textbook example of both.”

Why not read…

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