Reed Questions Hegseth on DOD Iran War & Notes That DOD Has Plenty of Money but Lacks Right Priorities, Strategy, & Civilian Leadership

*** WATCH: Video of Sen. Reed at Appropriations Committee hearing ***

WASHINGTON, DC - Noting that President Trump rushed the nation into an unauthorized war with Iran; failed to plan for the most obvious contingencies; and has yet to achieve any of the objectives used as a pre-text for war, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), a member of the Appropriations Committee who opposed the war from the outset, today questioned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on President Trump's $67.1 billion supplemental funding request for the Iran war, which continues to increase prices on all Americans.

As President Trump intensifies the conflict with Iran, his Administration is seeking more taxpayer dollars to fund the war: $67.1 billion in extra military spending this year. That number includes over $18 billion in munitions that have already been requested in the president's FY27 budget request; an extra $1 billion for the Army to patrol the southern border; and another $800 million to continue funding the National Guard's deployment in Washington, DC. President Trump's supplemental request also comes at a time when DOD sits on roughly $75 billion in unspent funding provided in Republicans' party-line "One Big Beautiful Bill."

At the outset of the hearing, Reed noted that while the supplemental request seeks billions of dollars for ad hoc disaster assistance that would only benefit farmers in the Midwest and Florida, President Trump is unfairly denying over $19 million in emergency declaration assistance to Rhode Island for the historic blizzard the state experienced earlier this year.

During the hearing, Senator Reed pressed Secretary Hegseth about the failure to plan for the obvious contingency that Iran would try to effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz.

SEN. REED: Secretary Hegseth: On February 28th, when you initiated this war without authorization from Congress, the Strait of Hormuz was open and providing vital fuel supplies for the whole world. Now they're closed effectively, impacting globally the price of oil and the economies of the whole world. But the Department of Defense has been planning for potential operations against Iran for many, many years. And one of their obvious assumptions was that the Strait of Hormuz could be closed. Were you unaware of that?

SEC. HEGSETH: Senator, you are correct. Nobody plans more and looks at more contingencies than our department, and so, of course, undertaking a historic effort like this, at this scope and scale, of course, the Strait of Hormuz was front and center in every single aspect of that. Hence why one of our key objectives to begin with was to sink the entirety of Iran's Navy, which its conventional Navy was sunk. Now, you can't get rid of every single fast boat in every single machine gun and a fast boat, or every single coastal cruise missile. So we acknowledge that if the state decided to become a terror state shooting at commercial shipping, that would be an ongoing and contested part of the battle, to include their willingness to mine international waters.

REED: So you were completely aware of that the Strait of Hormuz could be closed. And obviously, sinking their ships has not affected their ability to effectively close the Strait. Did you...

HEGSETH: We had U.S. boats that surrendered to Iranian ships under the Biden administration. So, their Navy was effective in...

REED: Listen, we're talking about the war you started. Not a situation in which oil was flowing freely. There was no conflict. We weren't losing personnel as a result of Iranian action. So, your fallback to the Biden administration is just a very, very obvious excuse for what I think is, probably, as you describe so often, gross negligence. You did not fully inform the President that you would be in a situation where the Strait of Hormuz could be effectively closed, oil prices could surge, and, effectively, the Iranians could maintain their ability to strike back as they are right now. They just killed some of our servicemembers last weekend.

HEGSETH: This battlefield, and all the dynamics of it, of which the Chairman and I are responsible for ensuring the President understands every branch and sequel of what could happen, and we did. So the fact that those contingencies all were part of the possibility, and we understood that, is all the more reason why President Trump deserves the kind of praise he should get for undertaking this effort, having the courage to ensure that crazy Islamists can't have a nuclear weapon to hold us at issue, and he's been willing to stay here to do that, regardless of the challenge... It should be. So these should be...

REED: Excuse me. He should be praised for starting a war without authority, creating a situation in which the world economy is suffering tremendously? Where we have to have extra money for our farmers? And we have no outcome, at least no realistic outcome in sight yet. Let me switch to General Caine. General Caine, these airstrikes have not yet deterred and defeated the Iranians. Do you think airstrikes alone will do that?

GEN. CAINE: Sir, I think academically, as you look across the totality of history, air power's got limits, and we always have to be mindful of those. I think where America's area of exclusivity is, is when we bring the totality of the diplomatic, informational, economic, and pair that with the military and there's a lot of that work going on, sir.

REED: Well, the military, the next step would be escalation by ground combat. Do you anticipate that escalation?

CAINE: Sir, I think it'd be unhelpful for me to opine on hypotheticals. What I can tell you is we always develop an unbelievable amount of options and the associated risks, and then my main job is to always ensure that leaders understand those options and the risks.

REED: Now, if you employ ground troops to seize objectives, which I would assume would be the first stage. Are you prepared for an extended guerrilla war, which would likely happen in that area?

CAINE: Sir, with all due respect, I think it'd be unhelpful for me to opine on hypothetical situations, on whatever decisions the president may or may not take in the future.

REED: Have you advised the President that ground combat would be very expensive in the lives of our soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, and also could probably to an extended unconventional war in that area? I don't see the Iranian sort of throwing their hands up and saying, you know, 'welcome to Iran.'

CAINE: [Laughter] Senator, I always advised the president on a range of military options, and all of the risks that are contained within that. But I have to keep my military advice to the president, private, sir.

REED: Well, thank you.

After the hearing, Senator Reed stated:

"DOD has plenty of money. It lacks the right priorities and sensible civilian leadership. There is no reason for Congress to approve $67.1 billion when this Administration continues to mislead about the actual cost of this war.

"I opposed this war from the start because it was clear where things were headed with Trump and Hegseth in charge. Their actions are driving up prices, costing U.S. servicemember lives, and depleting important weapon stockpiles. Unfortunately, President Trump and Secretary Hegseth are only now just realizing that military supremacy without a coherent strategy and robust diplomatic engagement does not translate to automatic victory. The Trump Administration doesn't seem to have a firm grasp on Iran's political and strategic thinking.

"Given that President Trump has no coherent endgame and has not achieved the stated objectives he used as a pretext for war, Americans are right to be skeptical of simply throwing more money and military weapons at the problem and expecting a different result.

"Nearly five months into a high-cost, low-return war that has failed to make America more secure, President Trump should not be asking for more money without first seeking authorization from Congress and the American people."

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