Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has been accused of trying to gaslight the public after claiming an “epic victory” over Iran, despite the regime now controlling the world’s most crucial oil chokepoint and imposing demands America previously rejected.
Hours after the U.S. and Iran reached a two week ceasefire deal, the United Arab Emirates also confirmed on Wednesday morning that they had intercepted 17 ballistic missiles and 25 drones launched from Iran, prompting claims that America was being “played.”
Despite this, Hegseth sought to assure the public that intervening in the conflict had been worth it.
“Operation Epic Fury was a historic and overwhelming victory on the battlefield. A ‘Capital V’ victory,” the former Fox & Friends host said.
He also declared it was a “big day for world peace,” but declined to take a question from a reporter who yelled from the back of the briefing room: “They’re still firing ballistic missiles!”
Hegseth’s briefing came after the two sides agreed to a ceasefire—hours before Trump’s 8 pm deadline on Tuesday night, after he threatened to obliterate a “whole civilization” if they didn’t reach a deal.
In a series of Truth Social posts, the president declared that Iran was tired of war, that the proposed ceasefire would end the conflict, and that the U.S. would “work closely” with the new regime in Iran to eliminate the country’s nuclear program.
“It’s always been non-negotiable that they won’t have nuclear capabilities,” Hegseth added on Wednesday.
However, Iran’s publicly reported position is the opposite. It has insisted on its right to continue uranium enrichment and has demanded a range of measures that the U.S. previously rejected in earlier negotiations.
Conditions include the lifting of all primary and secondary sanctions on Iran, U.S. military withdrawal from the Middle East, the release of frozen Iranian assets, and an end to all attacks.
Iran also wants continued control of the Strait of Hormuz, where 20 percent of the world’s oil usually flows. As a result of the war, Tehran now exercises de facto control over the Strait, with Iran’s Foreign Minister declaring that vessels seeking to transit the Strait must coordinate directly with Iranian armed forces, subject to unspecified “technical limitations.”
Professor Robert Pape, the founding director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats, described the situation as “huge strategic defeat” and America’s “biggest loss since Vietnam.”
“Shows the surge of Iran as the emerging 4th center of world power,” he wrote on X.
Melanie D’Arrigo, the executive director for Campaign for NY Health, noted: “To recap, Trump started a war that wasted $45 billion, brought us to the brink of nuclear war, gave his family military contracts, enriched his friends and family with insider information and market manipulation, alienated allies, and strengthened Iran.”
Even Fox News host and Trump ally, John Roberts, noted: “There’s a lot of daylight between the two proposals.”
“Iran says that it wants a continuation of Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz… and acceptance that Iran can enrich uranium for its nuclear program. On the other hand, the president says there will be no enrichment,” he said.
Hegseth’s briefing was the latest update on a war that so far resulted in at least 13 U.S. service officers dying, soaring gas prices, the killing of countless civilians in Iran, and the alienation of America from its allies.
It has also sparked growing calls from both sides of the political spectrum to impeach the president or invoke the 25th Amendment—the constitutional provision that allows the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to declare a president unable to perform the duties of office.
This came after a series of increasingly extreme threats from Trump.
On Sunday, Trump posted a profanity-laced ultimatum telling Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz—or face attacks on power plants and infrastructure. Then today, he escalated even further—warning that “a whole civilization” could be wiped out if Iran doesn’t comply.
Former Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene called the president’s threat“evil and madness.”
“25TH AMENDMENT!!! Not a single bomb has dropped on America. We cannot kill an entire civilization,” she wrote on X.
