Trump administration official misquotes Tarantino as Bible in Pentagon speech

During a speech at the Pentagon, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth cited a passage from the Book of Ezekiel that he attributed to the King James Bible. However, the verse, which begins 'The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men,' is actually from Quentin Tarantino's 1994 film 'Pulp Fiction,' not from any biblical text. The incident was highlighted by poet and essayist Gabriel Ventura, who collected such 'deliriums' presented during the first Commission for Crimes Against Reality (C.C.C.R.) held at the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza. Ventura's work critiques the blurring of fiction and reality in contemporary political discourse, particularly under the Trump administration. The commission, a conceptual project, examines instances where public figures confuse fictional narratives with factual reality. Hegseth's misquote is the latest example of what Ventura calls 'crimes against reality,' where fabricated or cinematic references are presented as historical or religious truths.