Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth championed President Donald Trump’s strikes on Iran in a press conference Monday morning, refuting concerns from the “fake news” media and “political left” that the conflict would lead to an “endless war.”
“To the media outlets and political left screaming ‘endless wars,’ stop. This is not Iraq. This is not endless,” Hegseth said. “Our generation knows better and so does this president.”
The defense secretary insisted the strikes, which have led to a deadly exchange of fire in the region, would prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon and harming more Americans, even as the operation has already killed four service members.
Hegseth pushed back on other assertions about Trump’s motivation in conducting the strikes, saying America was doing things “on our terms.”
“No stupid rules of engagement, no nation-building quagmire, no democracy-building exercise, no politically-correct wars. We fight to win,” Hegseth said.
Striking a dogmatic tone, Hegseth praised U.S. partners who supported the mission, “unlike so many of our traditional allies, who wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force.”
But when pressed with further questions about the goal of the operation, how many U.S. troops were involved and when officials anticipated its end, Hegseth declined to answer, taking up a more familiar tone toward the media.
"I heard the question: ‘about four weeks’,” Hegseth said, referring to a reporter’s query about whether the operation would take four weeks.
“It's the typical NBC gotcha-type question. President Trump has all the latitude in the world to talk about how long it may or may not take,” the secretary of defense said, before pivoting to claim former President Joe Biden “didn’t even know” what was going on.
When asked if U.S. boots were on the ground in Iran, Hegseth replied, “Why in the world would we tell you, you, the enemy, anybody, what we will or will not do in pursuit of an objective?”
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair General Dan Caine gave reporters some details about the logistics of “Operation Epic Fury,” which had been months, in some cases years, in the making.
Caine said the president gave the final orders around 3:30 p.m. Friday, telling military officials: “Operation Epic Fury is approved. No aborts. Good luck. Close.”
Those orders promoted thousands of U.S. troops from various military branches to carry out the operation, which included more than 100 aircraft launched from land, sea and tankers. The strikes began at 9:45 a.m., Tehran time, Caine confirmed.
Caine acknowledged that the U.S. would likely experience more casualties.
While Hegseth and Caine insisted the goal of the operation is to eliminate Iran’s ability to build a nuclear weapon, it also led to the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Hegseth encouraged Iranians to take advantage of the opportunity for regime change.
“This is not a regime change war, but the regime sure did change,” Hegseth said.
Over the course of the roughly 40-minute press conference, Hegseth reiterated that the president’s decision to strike Iran was not starting a war, rather “finishing” one, hinting that a regime will be left to the people.
"I think the message the president has given has been clear: to the people of Iran, this is your moment,” he said.
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