Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth tore into the media again at a press conference to update the nation about President Donald Trump’s Iran War.
Hegseth began Thursday morning by paying tribute to the U.S. service members who have been killed in the conflict.
“What I heard through tears, through hugs, through strength and through unbreakable resolve was the same from family after family,” Hegseth said of the fallen soldiers’ families. “They said, ‘finish this.’”
The Pentagon chief again berated the press for “call[ing] into question every step” of the war, now in its third week, and has so far claimed the lives of 13 U.S. service members.
The conflict has brought tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial corridor for global trade — to a standstill, sending oil prices soaring past the $100-a barrel milestone several times in recent weeks. Trump and his aides have been defiant that the U.S. is winning the war, but have not offered a concrete timeline for the end of the U.S. operation.
“We’re winning, decisively and on our terms,” Hegseth told the American people, and said the press “wants President Trump to fail.”
Hegseth attempted to reassure the public that the U.S. is not spinning into a “forever war” with Iran as he described the joint bombing campaign with Israel as “laser-focused and decisive.”
During the briefing, Hegseth said the U.S. has struck more than 7,000 targets in Iran, wiped out its submarines and has “crippled” the nation’s military ports.
“We are hunting them down methodically, ruthlessly and overwhelmingly like no other military in the world can do,” Hegseth said. “Today will be the largest strike package yet.”
Reporters quizzed the defense chief about a report that the Pentagon asked the White House to approve a more than $200 billion funding request to Congress toward the war effort.
“I think that number could move,” Hegseth said when asked to confirm the report. “Obviously, it takes money to kill bad guys.”
The Trump administration is considering the deployment of thousands of additional U.S. troops to the Middle East, according to Reuters.
Troops could be deployed to ensure the safe passage for oil tankers through the critical Strait of Hormuz, a mission primarily envisioned to be carried out by air and naval forces, sources familiar with the matter told the news agency.
“There has been no decision to send ground troops at this time, but President Trump wisely keeps all options at his disposal,” said a White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity to the outlet.
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