Democratic Washington Rep. Adam Smith pressed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth Wednesday about his seemingly contradictory nuclear claims about Iran’s nuclear program.
Hegseth said Iran’s nuclear facilities were “obliterated,” even though the administration has claimed that the war was necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. While Smith challenged the administration’s motives, Hegseth said entering the war was justified because the Iranians had not given up their nuclear ambitions.
“Woah, woah, woah, woah. Reclaiming my time for just a second here. We had to start this war, you just said, 60 days ago because the nuclear weapon was an imminent threat. Now you’re saying that it was completely obliterated?” Smith asked.
“They had not given up their nuclear ambitions and they had a conventional shield of thousands of missiles … The facilities were bombed and obliterated, but their ambitions continued and they’re building a conventional shield,” Hegseth replied.
WATCH:
Administration officials claimed Iran posed an imminent threat to the U.S., though they have yet to pinpoint the specific threat. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. preemptively launched strikes in Iran because Israel told them that they would attack Iran, which could potentially cause Iran to attack American forces and cause higher casualties.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly said the U.S. struck Iran to prevent the regime from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Former Director of the National Counterterrorism Center Joe Kent, who resigned from the administration over the war, said Iran was never on the verge of having a nuclear weapon.
Trump said the military destroyed Iran’s nuclear facilities during the strikes in June 2025.
Vice President J.D. Vance said the U.S. failed to reach a deal with Iran on April 11 because they refused to abandon their nuclear program. Special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and special envoy for peace Jared Kushner planned to travel to Pakistan to engage in peace talks with the Iranians, though Trump eventually canceled the trip.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli leaders visited the White House on Feb. 11 and convinced Trump to launch strikes on Iran with a plan some administration officials described as “farcical,” The New York Times reported on April 7. Several U.S. cabinet officials, including Vance, voiced skepticism about Israel’s attack plans and regime change.
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