The office of Secretary of State Marco Rubio is facing questions over a senior aide who was previously dismissed from Governor Ron DeSantis' 2023 presidential campaign after resharing a video that ended with a neo-Nazi symbol, The Daily Mail reported.

Nate Hochman, now a senior aide serving as deputy director of the State Department's policy planning office and chief speechwriter for Rubio, lost his DeSantis campaign job after resharing a video that depicted a dejected pro-Trump meme character being cheered by headlines about the governor's immigration and anti-"woke" crackdowns, according to The Daily Mail. The clip closed with the Florida state seal morphing into a Sonnenrad, or "black sun," an emblem the Anti-Defamation League classifies as a neo-Nazi and white supremacist symbol. The symbol, also known as the "sun wheel," traces to Nazi-era Germany and has appeared at white supremacist events in the United States, including the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, according to the ADL.

The policy planning staff Hochman now helps lead historically serves as the State Department's in-house think tank, providing long-range analysis and drafting major foreign policy frameworks, and past directors have included figures such as George Kennan and Anne-Marie Slaughter — a role that gives its occupants influence over the intellectual direction of U.S. diplomacy.

The controversy extended beyond the video. In a recorded conversation with white nationalist influencer Nick Fuentes, published as audio by The Dispatch, Hochman praised the provocateur's reach among young men. "You've gotten a lot of kids based, and we respect that for sure," Hochman told Fuentes. He later said he had been trying to draw Fuentes out and had voiced views he does not actually hold, according to The Daily Mail. Fuentes has been banned from major social media platforms and has dined publicly with former President Donald Trump, episodes that drew widespread criticism.

"I said some really stupid things, which I don't actually believe, that signaled agreement with Fuentes, even though I couldn't disagree more with his vision of the world," Hochman said, per The Daily Mail.

The State Department has defended Hochman. Spokesman Tommy Pigott told the New York Times: "Nate Hochman is a trusted and key member of the department who has worked tirelessly to advance the president's foreign policy agenda." The episode comes amid broader scrutiny of personnel vetting for senior administration appointments, where past controversies involving political staff have repeatedly prompted questions about hiring standards.

Hochman denied creating the video, though The Daily Mail noted he was among the first prominent DeSantis accounts to spread it. A New Republic investigation later reported that people on the DeSantis campaign had made the clip and planted it in a fan account. Hochman said he deleted his repost once he understood the symbol and alerted his superiors, but the resulting coverage cost him the job regardless.

Following his firing, Hochman worked with the conservative group America 2100 and advised Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) before joining the State Department, according to The Daily Mail.

Source: Raw Story