Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared irritated after a reporter asked on Tuesday when President Trump would decide to abandon his original demand for Iran’s unconditional surrender.
In a tense exchange at a Pentagon news conference, Newsmax’s James Rosen noted Trump’s changing rationale for the war with Tehran that began on February 28, initially expressing “gratitude and admiration” to Hegseth and U.S. troops before questioning the president’s changing rhetoric.
“I want to begin by expressing my gratitude and admiration for the work you do, for everyone involved in our Armed Forces, and for the accomplishments of the epic Operation Fury, which I believe are too often undervalued,” Rosen told Hegers and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Cain.
“But I don’t think these achievements overshadow the major flaws that occurred here, and I hope you both can address that,” he added. “On the first day of this conflict, President Trump said directly to the Iranian people, ‘When we are done, take over your government. It will be yours.’ And then on the seventh day of the conflict, the President said in a Truth Society post, ‘Nothing but ‘ALL CAPS, EXClamation Marks’ UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER! ‘There will be no deal with Iran. “
Rosen continued: “What happened to the promise to the Iranians? When did the president decide to give in to demands for unconditional surrender?”
Hegseth insisted Trump “isn’t giving in to anything” and attacked Rosen for raising the issue.
“James, I wouldn’t – you started out well, but you ended up exactly where we knew you would end up,” the defense secretary responded.
“The president is not surrendering on anything. He is in charge, we maintain the upper hand, and the Freedom Plan will only strengthen that hand,” Heggs continued. “So he’s going to make sure that whatever deal is reached, or whatever end state is reached, that Iran never has a nuclear weapon, that’s the No. 1 priority.”
“He has been focused on that and the deal and the discussions have been around that. It’s up to the Iranian people to use it afterwards,” he added. “He’s very aware of that.”
When the conflict began, Trump demanded Tehran’s unconditional surrender and called on the Iranian people to take back their country from the regime. However, as the conflict in the Middle East continued, the president changed his tune, declaring that regime change had been achieved and that Iran’s original leaders had been “eliminated” and replaced by a new group of people.
The United States currently has a fragile ceasefire agreement with Iran, which Trump extended indefinitely on April 21 to prompt the regime to reach a peace agreement. He claimed many times Although he continues to issue new threats against Tehran, the fighting is nearing its end.
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