Overview
- Multiple reports this Monday identified Nate Hochman as deputy director in the State Department’s Policy Planning Office and as Secretary Marco Rubio’s chief speechwriter.
- Hochman was dismissed from Ron DeSantis’s 2023 presidential campaign after he reshared a pro‑DeSantis video that included a Sonnenrad or Black Sun, a symbol the Anti‑Defamation League associates with neo‑Nazi and white supremacist movements.
- Hochman says he did not create the clip, removed his repost once he learned the symbol’s meaning, and told supervisors in 2024 that he rejected claims he produced neo‑Nazi content.
- A New Republic investigation reported that people on the DeSantis campaign created and placed the clip in a fan account, a claim that remains contested across outlets and not independently verified in the public record.
- The State Department publicly defended Hochman as a key contributor and has not disclosed any internal discipline or formal inquiry, leaving questions about vetting, political fallout, and potential review of hiring practices.