Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was criticized by California Governor Gavin Newsom after Hegseth accused the press of only reporting on the negative effects of President Donald Trump's attacks on Iran.
Trump has said that the U.S. military was "knocking the crap out of Iran" but the "big wave" of attacks is still yet to come, and has not ruled out putting boots on the ground, saying the war is progressing "way ahead of schedule." Trump has urged Iranians to revolt, even as the regime reshuffles leadership following the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and some of his associates.
At least six American service members have been killed since the attacks were first carried out on Saturday—and Hegseth believes the press is too busy reporting on the negatives when the administration, in his view, has made major strides.
He said:
"This is what the fake news misses. We've taken control of Iran's airspace and waterways without boots on the ground. We control their fate."
"But when a few drones get through or tragic things happen, it's front page news. I get it, the press only wants to make the president look bad. But try for once to report the reality."
"The terms of this war will be set by us at every step."
You can hear what he said in the video below.
Newsom fired back:
"6 U.S. service members are dead and Pete’s takeaway is that the real tragedy is bad press for Trump."
You can see his response below.
Others have also called Hegseth out as well.
Hegseth was previously called out for claiming that the U.S. "didn't start this war" with Iran—just days after the Trump administration authorized an attack on various sites in Iran with the joint efforts of Israel.
Speaking to the press, Hegseth said that Iran has “waged a savage, one-sided war” for “47 long years” even if the country’s leadership didn’t “declare it openly," adding that "we didn’t start this war, but under President Trump, we are finishing it."
That runs counter to what Trump himself has said. Trump told reporters that the U.S. has "got the greatest military in the world and we’re using it." Trump promised the U.S. military would hit Iran with even more of its might, saying that "the big wave hasn’t even happened" and that "the big one is coming soon.”
Despite this, Trump said Iran's retaliatory attacks on neighboring Arab countries have been "the biggest surprise," as if he expected Iran to stand idly by. He said the Iranians "were going to be very little involved and now they insist on being involved," adding that he would like not to see the fighting "go on" for more than four weeks.
@KeshaRose/X