00:00On day 14 of this conflict, in the second week of the conflict, you stated that Iran's military had been,
00:06quote, destroyed and, quote, made combat ineffective.
00:10Was that an accurate statement? Yes or no?
00:14Iran's ability to challenge the United States of America at the level at which we're capable of.
00:18That's not what I asked.
00:19On day 14 of this conflict, Mr. Secretary, day 14, nearly five months ago, you stated that Iran's military had
00:27been, quote, destroyed and, quote, made combat ineffective.
00:30That was on day 14 of the war.
00:32Was that an accurate statement?
00:35They didn't have a navy any longer.
00:37It was completely sunk.
00:38Their missiles were buried underneath a lot of their underground facilities, and their defense industrial base has been almost completely
00:45destroyed.
00:45So as far as a military assessment of Iran's capabilities, it didn't mean, by any stretch of the imagination, absolute
00:51zero.
00:52Mr. Secretary, you stated that on day 14 of this conflict, in the second week of the conflict, you stated
00:59that Iran's military had been, quote, destroyed and, quote, made combat ineffective.
01:06Was that an accurate statement?
01:07Yes or no?
01:09Iran's ability to challenge the United States of America at the level at which we're capable of.
01:13That's not what I asked you, Mr. Secretary.
01:14You said on day 14, Iran's military had been, quote, destroyed and, quote, made combat ineffective.
01:22Yes or no?
01:23Was that an accurate statement?
01:26What the American military has done to the Iranian military is a historic military defeat.
01:30Will you answer the question, under oath?
01:31And they're ineffective in that context.
01:34Three weeks later, you declared victory.
01:36That was now nearly four months ago.
01:40Three weeks after you had already said Iran's military was destroyed and combat ineffective, you said, quote, Operation Epic Fury
01:48was a historic and overwhelming victory.
01:51You said Iran's military had been rendered, quote, combat ineffective for years to come.
01:56And you stated we had, quote, achieved every single objective.
02:01Were those accurate statements?
02:03It certainly was on behalf of the men and women in uniform a historic military victory over Iran.
02:08Had Iran's military been rendered, quote, combat ineffective for years to come?
02:13That was a statement that you made four months ago.
02:15They had 160 naval vessels in the Blue Water Navy.
02:17You need to answer the questions, Mr. Secretary.
02:19And they're gone.
02:19Their air force is completely combat ineffective.
02:22You said four months ago.
02:22And they don't have a defense industrial base.
02:24Excuse me, Mr. Secretary.
02:25So describe to me a country that doesn't have an air force, a navy, or a defense industrial base.
02:28And I will describe to you a country that does not have an effective military.
02:32Mr. Secretary, you stated.
02:32It can lob missiles.
02:33Mr. Secretary, you stated four months ago.
02:36Bob missiles, but it's not a combat effective military.
02:37That Iran's military had been rendered, quote, combat ineffective for years to come.
02:42Has Iran's military been, for the last four months, combat ineffective?
02:47It's been set back not just years, but likely decades, considering it can't build at the level it did before
02:52and not even close.
02:53It doesn't mean it doesn't have capabilities.
02:55Mr. Secretary, you stated we had, quote, achieved every single objective.
03:00Was that an accurate statement four months ago?
03:02The main objective of this was to ensure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon.
03:06Their main sites were obliterated.
03:08We're watching over them and we're holding that issue.
03:10If they don't give them up at the table, there's other ways we can take them away.
03:13Early in the conflict on day three, Mr. Secretary, early in the conflict day three,
03:18you said one of those core objectives was to, quote, destroy the missile threat.
03:22And as you restated on day five, to, quote, obliterate Iran's missiles and drones.
03:27Those were clearly and repeatedly stated core objectives of the campaign,
03:31which four months ago you declared had been completed victoriously with every single objective achieved.
03:38Were those objectives achieved four months ago?
03:41No one ever stated that every single missile was gone.
03:44Ultimately, combat ineffective means they're not able to dig them out of their UGFs and shoot at us.
03:48Had the missile threat and defeated four months ago.
03:49It doesn't mean they don't have underground facilities where they put missiles in them
03:52and hold onto them because they're the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism.
03:56So we never expected they would stop having capabilities to shoot.
03:59The question is at scale against opponent like the United States of America,
04:03which went toe-to-toe with them in Iran couldn't and cannot handle it.
04:05You stated on March 8th, day nine of the war on 60 Minutes,
04:09you assured the American people of Iranian surrender.
04:12Does that remain your prediction?
04:15Ultimately, Iran will never have a nuclear weapon to threaten the United States of America.
04:19That has been the objective and it remains so.
04:22So just to review, you will not answer whether your statement made on the 14th day of the war
04:28that Iran's military had been, quote, destroyed and made combat ineffective
04:32was a truthful statement to the American people
04:35as you sit here and ask for tens of billions more for the conflict.
04:38But Senator's time has expired.
04:39It's been a historic and effective military campaign against the largest state sponsor of terrorism.
04:44Won't answer the question.
04:45Senator Peters is recognized.
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