Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday gave lawmakers no clear view of when and how the Iran war will end. But he identified a central obstacle to accomplishing the mission: treasonous Democrats and their demands for an endgame.
The Pentagon chief, in his first public appearance with lawmakers since the military conflict began, repeatedly called congressional Democrats a major obstacle to U.S. success in Iran.
Hegseth’s decision to brand critics as short-sighted and unpatriotic takes a page from President Donald Trump’s book: When threatened, attack. But the Defense Secretary’s attempt to equate Democrats with enemy soldiers takes his rhetoric to a new level.
“The biggest challenge, the biggest adversary we face at this point is the reckless, negligent and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans,” Hegseth said at a budget hearing of the House Armed Services Committee. “Your hatred of President Trump blinds you to the reality of the success of this mission.”
Despite the uncertain armistice and unfulfilled strategic goals, Hegseth argued that the US was winning the war. He described the US strikes in Iran as “a stunning success” and vowed that “unlike previous foolish administrations, this will not last for years and decades.”
He repeatedly dodged pointed questions from Democratic lawmakers, calling them “clickbait” moments — even when questions focused on readiness and personnel issues.
His comments were greeted with equal hostility by committee Democrats, who questioned the propriety of military action and his confrontational stance with committee members.
“You have reserved more words, and more vitriol, for condemning the Democrats than you have for (Chinese President) Xi Jinping and (Russian President Vladimir) Putin combined,” the representative said. chrissy houlahan (D-Pa.). “It’s great for me that you’ve decided to use your words and your time for this.”
Representative. Salad Carbajal (D-Calif.) called Hegseth “the gift that keeps on giving when it comes to disability.” Many others accused him of misleading Congress and the public on the state of the war, arguing that the two-month war had actually strengthened Iran’s strategic position in the Middle East.
Democrats also raised questions over the Pentagon chief’s firing of top military officials, deadly strikes against suspected drug smuggling ships and disproportionate aid to Ukraine.
But the former Fox News host provided little detail to lawmakers, often criticizing Democrats and the policies of the Biden and Obama administrations. He argued that the Trump-era Pentagon is correcting its mistakes.
Representative. sarah jacobs (D-Calif.) pressed Hegseth on whether Trump is mentally suitable for the position. Hegseth took a dig at former President Joe Biden and Democrats, as well as the secret hospitalization of his predecessor, former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, saying Trump is “the sharpest, most inflammatory commander-in-chief we have had in generations”.
“Did you ask Joe Biden this same question for four years?” Hegseth said. “You want to ask this question after you and your fellow Democrats defended Joe Biden, who could barely speak and didn’t know what day of the week it was?”
Hegseth had a fairly mild exchange with the panel’s Republicans. But some expressed cautious dissent with the administration, raising concerns over the firings of Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George and Navy Secretary John Phelan.
The lawmakers found little in common with each other. But rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.), one of the Republicans who criticized George’s firing, reminded the room that the administration’s record $1.5 trillion budget proposal will need bipartisan support in the coming months.
“We’re going to have to get some Democrats voting to do the things we need to do to fund the Department of Defense,” Scott said. “And I would encourage everyone to keep that in mind, because on the plus side we’re going to lose some Republican votes.”
The war in Iran has cost about $25 billion so far, Acting Pentagon Comptroller Jules Hurst said, offering the first official estimate of a US military conflict with little public support.
Hegseth said he hoped Congress would provide funding to cover the war in this year’s supplement. Democratic lawmakers have expressed concerns about that new spending and the administration’s massive defense spending for fiscal year 2027.
The defense secretary will face another series of questioning when he appears before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday morning.
