The retired Lieutenant Dan “Razin” Caine, President Donald Trump’s candidate to be the next president of the team leaders, denied on Tuesday that he has used a hat “make America great” or any other type of political merchandise.
In at least one count of the first meeting of Caine and Trump in Iraq in 2018, the president seems to indicate that Caine wore a Red Maga hat, something that would not be allowed under military rules.
The question was raised by some senators at Caine’s confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
“Let me start asking about a hyperbole that could have been in the press,” said Senator Roger Wicker, a Miss Republican. He said at the beginning of Tuesday’s audience. “Gen. Caine, did you use a magic hat in front of the president?”
“No, sir,” he replied.
He provided the same answer when Wicker asked: “Did you wear a magic hat at some point?”
Lieutenant General John D. Caine takes his seat when he arrives for an audience of the Senate Armed Services Committee on his nomination to be the president of the Chiefs of General Staff in Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on April 1, 2025.
Nathan Howard/Reuters
And when Wicker pressed it, Caine said: “Lord, for 34 years, I have made my office and my commitment to my commission, and I have never used any political merchandise.”
When Senator Jack Reed, Dr.i., a classification member in the Committee, continued with the same line of questions, Caine replied: “As I mentioned the president, for 34 years, I have confirmed my oath and in the responsibilities of my commission.
“I think I came back and listened to those ribbons, and I think the president was talking about someone else,” Caine said. “And I have never used any political merchandise or said anything in that sense.”
Trump’s story about how he met Caine has evolved over the years since he mentioned Caine for the first time during the comments at the Conservative Political Action Conference in February 2019, shortly after his trip to Iraq the previous year.
Trump has repeatedly given CAINE to finish the war against the Islamic State and, in his first count of his meeting, he pointed out how Caine became memorable for him for saying that Isis could be destroyed in weeks quickly hitting strongly in its last remaining territory in Syria, something that Trump said that his advisors in Washington in Washington argued that they could still take years.
Lieutenant General John D. Caine takes his seat when he arrives for an audience of the Senate Armed Services Committee on his nomination to be the president of the Chiefs of General Staff in Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on April 1, 2025.
Jim Watson/AFP through Getty Images
In that first count, Trump focused on how he was beaten by the call sign of General “Razin”, asking if it was a reference to the raisin fruit.
Trump continued to tell a version of that story over the years, but at the CPAC last year, where he again mentioned that first encounter with Caine, the president seemed to say that Caine wore a red magic hat at that time.
However, it was not clear if Trump referred to Caine or a sergeant because in the transcription of those comments, he mentioned for the first time to meet with Caine, whom he referred as a general and asked for his name.
Then, according to transcription, Trump seemed to ask a sergeant his name, who in turn told him, according to Trump, “yes, Lord. I love you, Lord. I think you are great, Lord. I will kill for you, Lord.”
Then he puts on a “Make America Great Again” hat, as well as hundreds of other service members in Trump’s count.
“And they are not supposed to do this, but everyone puts the hat ‘making America great’, right? Don’t suppose it.
The use of political merchandise by members of the military service is not allowed, since it is a principle of an apolitical army.
