Hegseth leaves door open for boots on the ground in Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday left the door open for boots on the ground in Iran, but said the United States would not be pulled into an “endless” war similar to Iraq. 

Hegseth was asked during a press briefing whether the U.S. currently had troops in Iran. 

“No, but we’re not going to go into the exercise of what we will or will not do,” he said. 

“I think it’s one of those fallacies for a long time that this department or presidents or others should tell the American enemies, by the way, here’s exactly what, here’s exactly how long we’ll go, here’s exactly how far we’ll go, here’s what we’re willing to do and not do — it’s foolishness,” he added. 

Hegseth referenced his experience fighting in Iraq, saying Trump would not repeat the mistakes of the past. 

“You don’t have to roll 200,000 people in there and stay for 20 years. We’ve proven that you can achieve objectives that advance American interests without being foolish. Now, will we be bold about it? Are we going to be decisive about it? Put months and months of planning into what kind of effects we want to achieve? Absolutely,” he said. 

“But going forward, why in the world would we tell you, the enemy, anybody, what we will or will not do in pursuit of an objective.”

Hegseth said the objectives of the military operation were clear: “destroy Iranian offensive missiles, destroy Iranian missile production, destroy their navy and other security infrastructure, and they will never have nuclear weapons.”

However, it remains unclear whether Trump has a vision for Iran once those military objectives are completed. He has called on Iranians to stage a revolution against the Islamic regime, which has announced new leadership after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. 

Four Americans have been killed so far in the war. Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine, who also spoke to reporters Monday morning, said more Americans would likely die before it’s over. 

“This is not a single overnight operation. The military objectives that Centcom and the Joint Force have been tasked with will take some time to achieve, and in some cases, will be difficult and gritty work. We expect to take additional losses, and as always, we will work to minimize U.S. losses. But as the secretary said, this is major combat operations,” Caine said, referencing U.S. Central Command (Centcom). 

Trump issued a similar warning in a video posted to Truth Social on Sunday. 

“We pray for the full recovery of the wounded and send our immense love and eternal gratitude to the families of the fallen,” the president said in a video on his Truth Social platform. “And sadly, there will be likely be more before it ends. That’s the way it is.

“[There will] likely be more but we’ll do everything possible where that won’t be the case.”

Centcom announced Sunday that three American service members have been killed in action, while five were injured and “several” others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions during the operation that the U.S. and Israel launched against Iran on Saturday.

Early Monday, Centcom said a fourth U.S. soldier had been killed. 

Vice President Vance, speaking on Thursday, before Trump launched strikes on Iran, said there was “no chance” that it would lead to a longer war in the Middle East.

“The idea that we’re going to be in a Middle Eastern war for years with no end in sight — there is no chance that will happen,” said Vance, a longtime skeptic of foreign intervention. 

“I do think we have to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past,” Vance added. “I also think that we have to avoid overlearning the lessons of the past. Just because one president screwed up a military conflict doesn’t mean we can never engage in military conflict again. We’ve got to be careful about it, but I think the president is being careful.”

Trump’s war in Iran has quickly expanded, with Iran launching retaliatory attacks on Gulf states that host U.S. military bases, including Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. 

Hezbollah, the powerful Iranian proxy militia in Lebanon, has also entered the war, launching rockets into Israel, ending a monthslong ceasefire between the countries.

Updated at 9:30 a.m. EST

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