Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth returns to Capitol Hill on Wednesday as the war between Israel and Iran rages on and the world waits to see what President Donald Trump will do.
Hegseth is appearing for an FY2026 budget request hearing in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Gen. Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will also be testifying. While the topic is Pentagon funding, many lawmakers want to talk about the conflict in the Middle East — and any potential U.S. involvement.
On Tuesday, Trump stepped up his rhetoric on the burgeoning war. Trump floated the prospect of assassinating Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and claimed that the United States has control of Iranian airspace. U.S. warplanes haven’t been involved in the attacks on Iran — at least not openly.
Trump also called for Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” as he met with national security officials, part of his more warlike tone over the last few days. U.S. refueling aircraft that could be used in a bombing raid on Iran have been moved to Europe. A second aircraft battle group has been ordered to head to the region as well.
Iran “has prepared missiles and other military equipment for strikes on U.S. bases in the Middle East should the United States join Israel’s war against the country,” the New York Times reported, citing American officials who have seen intelligence assessments.
As we reported Tuesday morning, most lawmakers were supportive of Trump’s initial posture of staying out of the conflict. So it will be important to see how senators react to Trump’s saber rattling over Iran.
Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Armed Services panel, has been one of the party’s fiercest critics of Israel’s attack on Iran. Reed told us he’s looking for the latest update from Hegseth on the conflict.
“There’s a tendency to take a short-term view, when in fact, we’ve discovered to our chagrin that it’s easier to break things in the Middle East than to put them together,” Reed said.
Overnight, the Israel Defense Forces said they struck “a centrifuge production site and multiple weapon manufacturing facilities in the Tehran area, key elements of Iran’s nuclear weapons and missile programs.” More than 50 Israeli planes took part in the attacks.
Iran fired more than 20 ballistic missiles at Israel, but most of those were apparently intercepted by Israeli air defenses.
Resolution watch. Sen. Tim Kaine’s (D-Va.) privileged War Powers Resolution — which requires a Senate vote on whether the United States “engages in hostilities” against Iran — ripens next week. Kaine told us he hopes the Senate will vote on the resolution before leaving next week for the July 4th recess.
“When it comes to Congress and the Senate Democrats, if necessary, we will not hesitate to exercise our authority,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said.
A sign of where things stand with Democrats — Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) called for Hegseth to resign or be fired on Tuesday.
