Face the Nation: Crow, Grossi, Salvanto

[0:00] And we're joined now by Colorado Democratic Congressman Jason Crowe. Welcome back. [0:05] Thanks, Margaret. [0:05] So you sit on the House Intelligence Committee. This past week, you heard the Director of National [0:11] Intelligence testify about Iran's capabilities, saying we wouldn't see an ICBM that would, [0:18] in theory, be the thing that would carry a nuclear warhead, right, to American shores. [0:23] She said they wouldn't have one until 2035 if they even tried at all. [0:26] Is what, are you afraid she was wrong? Because Israel is saying that what was fired was an ICBM [0:33] that was aimed at this U.S.-U.K. base. [0:36] Yeah, she could be wrong. We obviously have to dive into the intelligence. The question has [0:40] never been whether or not Iran poses a threat or a series of threats to the United States. [0:45] But that's where the analysis begins, not when the analysis ends, right? We have lots of threats. [0:51] Kim Jong-un poses a threat. Putin poses a threat. We have threats around the world. The question is, [0:56] what do we do? [0:56] What do we do about it? And right now, we've spent $20 billion in the first two weeks of this war [1:01] alone, $1.5 billion a day. Americans are paying $300 million a day extra in energy prices. The [1:09] terror threat around the world against the United States and Americans is spreading. And there's no [1:14] off-ramp. We have no strategy and no endgame. This is a mess by any definition. And now we have to [1:20] figure out what we do from here. [1:21] So no timeline beyond the four to six weeks has been briefed or shared with Congress at [1:26] this point? [1:26] No, no. We are not getting the information from this administration. They started this war [1:33] without congressional authorization. There's no imminent threat. They actually have even stopped [1:37] trying to pretend there was an imminent threat, which is what is necessary for the president to [1:42] take action without congressional approval. So now here we are spending tens of billions of [1:48] dollars of taxpayer money, losing American lives. Congress isn't involved. We've been stonewalled. [1:54] The American people are not in the driver's seat here. [1:56] Right. Because Congress has been sidelined in this. They are the ones that need to have the voice and whether or not they're going to send their sons and daughters to go fight this war, whether or not they're going to finance it. It's time for this to end. [2:10] Let's take a break. I have more to talk to you about on the other side of it. So all of you, please stay with us. We'll be right back. [2:15] Back to Face the Nation. We return now to our conversation with Colorado Congressman Jason Crow. Before we leave the topic of Iran, I do want to ask you, last Sunday on this program, the [2:33] White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said the war was ahead of schedule. And while it was up to [2:40] the Budget Office, he didn't think the administration would need any kind of supplemental funding. But then days later, Secretary Hagseth seemed [2:47] to confirm the Pentagon needed as much as $200 billion. [2:52] As far as $200 billion, I think that number could move, obviously. It takes – it takes money to kill bad guys. So we're going back to Congress and the folks there to ensure the [3:01] supply chain is as low as everyone else. So 11.2 – 11.2 – 11.2 is wherepretty much the economy going to end up, and there's been so much ongoing [3:02] sp gloss, all of a sudden with the White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said the war is ahead of schedule, and while it was up to the budget office, he didn't think the administration would need any kind of [3:02] We're going back to Congress and our folks there to ensure that we're properly funded for what's been done, for what we may have to do in the future. [3:10] I know you're opposed to the war, but is there a way to structure this deal where you would be comfortable with additional funds? [3:18] No. If they think I'm going to vote for hundreds of billions of dollars for an unauthorized war, a war they didn't come to Congress for, a war they haven't given an explanation to the American people for what we're doing and not doing, how it's going to end, how we're protecting our service members. [3:32] And on top of that, the House Republicans gave DOD $150 billion slush fund last summer as part of Donald Trump's big, ugly bill. [3:43] And on top of that, they say they're going to come and ask for a $1.5 trillion defense budget. [3:48] And the Department of Defense, to this day, can't pass an audit. [3:52] They can't tell us where all their stuff is, where they're spending all their money. [3:55] So I'm not about to throw money at a DOD that can't pass an audit. [3:58] It's sitting on money that they already haven't accounted for and haven't spent. [4:02] And to perpetuate an unauthorized war that is not in America's interest. [4:07] I know you're a veteran, but you know that the accusation will be made that Democrats just don't support the troops. [4:13] There is, of course, that's what they're going to say. [4:15] But there is plenty of money within DOD for military families, for troops, for barracks. [4:20] I have guaranteed that. [4:22] I sit on the Armed Services Committee, and I will continue to push forward and vote to make sure our troops, our military is taken care of, that we have the military that we need to protect America. [4:32] What I'm not going to do is just throw money at the Iran war, which they're now admitting is a war. [4:40] This cannot continue. [4:42] We spent 20 years in Iraq and Afghanistan, trillions of dollars. [4:47] It ends here. [4:48] It must end here. [4:49] Tell me, though, as a Democrat, because Congress is scheduled to go on vacation soon. [4:55] A lot of TSA agents aren't receiving paychecks because of this Democratic-led funding shutdown because of a demand to change immigration policy. [5:03] Something the White House has not made any concessions on that I know of to date. [5:06] This is in the Senate. [5:07] But as a Democrat, I mean, look at Denver Airport near your district. [5:11] They're asking people to donate gift cards for TSA agents to make ends meet. [5:16] The airport says, you know, this is a huge generator in terms of what the airport does for the region. [5:22] This is hurting your community. [5:24] How do you continue to defend the shutdown? [5:27] I'm going to be really clear that this is a Republican shutdown. [5:30] Full stop. [5:31] Republicans said that. [5:31] Just yesterday. [5:33] Just yesterday. [5:33] Just yesterday. [5:33] Just yesterday. [5:34] The U.S. Senate held a vote. [5:36] And Senate Democrats put up an authorization to fund everything except for ICE and CBP. [5:42] That's Coast Guard. [5:43] That's TSA. [5:44] That's cybersecurity. [5:46] Every single Senate Republican voted against it. [5:49] In the House, we actually have a bill, Rosa DeLauro and Hakeem Jeffries. [5:52] We have a clean bill that would force a vote to open up everything, to fund everything except for ICE and CBP. [6:00] Republicans are stopping it. [6:01] They're not even allowing a vote. [6:03] They're not even allowing a vote on that bill. [6:04] So we are ready to go. [6:05] They are in control of every facet of government. [6:06] But in the meantime, these people are left stuck. [6:07] We're about to be in spring break. [6:08] Heavy traffic season. [6:09] They are in control of every element of government. [6:10] They're in control of what we vote for and don't vote for. [6:11] We are saying, let's open it back up. [6:12] Let's fund Coast Guard. [6:13] Let's fund FEMA. [6:14] Let's fund TSA. [6:15] Let's fund cybersecurity. [6:16] Which, by the way, we need because we just started a war with Iran, which has a huge cyber capability. [6:17] We want to fund TSA. [6:18] Let's fund cybersecurity. [6:19] Which, by the way, we need because we just started a war with Iran, which has a huge cyber capability. [6:21] We want to fund TSA. [6:22] Let's fund cybersecurity. [6:23] Let's fund FEMA. [6:24] Let's fund TSA. [6:25] Let's fund cybersecurity. [6:26] Which, by the way, we need because we just started a war with Iran, which has a huge [6:31] cyber capability. [6:33] We want to fund it. [6:34] We're ready to fund it. [6:35] We will take the votes tomorrow. [6:37] They're stopping that vote. [6:38] They own this shutdown. [6:39] Congressman Crow, thank you very much for your time today. [6:42] Thank you. [6:43] We'll be right back. [6:46] The U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, the IAEA, says it has not detected any raised levels [6:52] of radiation around nuclear sites that have been targeted by Iran. [6:55] strikes in Israel and in Iran. [6:57] On Thursday, we spoke with the head of that agency and began by asking him whether Iran's [7:02] nuclear ambitions can be destroyed through military action. [7:07] Well, of course, there has already been a lot of damage done. [7:13] Last year, the 12-day war was, in that sense, quite effective. [7:18] This time around, I think the focus of the campaign does not seem to be specifically [7:27] the nuclear facilities, although there have been some hits in Natanz and Isfahan, and [7:34] also at another place near Parchin, which used to be a facility more related to the [7:41] weaponization efforts, but back in the early 2000s. [7:44] So there has been some. [7:46] But I would say they have been relative. [7:48] They have been relatively marginal when you consider the overall nature of the military [7:54] campaign so far. [7:57] So going back to your question, there has been a lot of impact on the program. [8:04] One cannot deny that this has really rolled back the program considerably. [8:11] But my impression is that once the military effort comes to an end— [8:19] And we will still inherit a number of major issues that have been at the center of all [8:28] of this. [8:29] One, most notably, the inventory of unreached uranium at 60 percent, which is very close [8:36] to the degree you need to make a bomb. [8:39] That is going to still be where it is, largely. [8:44] Under the rubble. [8:45] Under the rubble, and in some cases, no rubble. [8:49] Somewhere under. [8:52] And also, importantly, some facilities, infrastructure, equipment, which have most probably survived [9:04] some of the attacks. [9:06] Even they could be damaged, seriously damaged. [9:12] But that is something that we will only be able to ascertain once our inspectors go back. [9:19] So… [9:20] Let's talk about that. [9:21] What I heard you say there is Iran had that nuclear weapons program that in 2003, according [9:26] to U.S. intelligence, was halted. [9:29] But as you know, there's this debate over whether Iran's nuclear program actually did [9:35] have a weapons ambition. [9:37] You were never quite able to say yes or no. [9:41] Well, because we are not analysts or people having opinions. [9:47] We are the IAEA. [9:49] So whenever we say something… [9:51] It has to be based on actual inspection. [9:55] And the thing is, and continues to be, one, yes, like you say, yes, we haven't seen [10:01] a systematic program like the Amad plan with offices, people reporting to people, and an [10:08] array of places where you are doing stuff. [10:11] But there were many, many concerning things, many unanswered questions, and especially [10:17] since 2019, 2020, when I became… [10:20] More or less. [10:21] More or less. [10:22] When I became director general, where, yes, in 2015, in 2016, when the JCPOA, the previous [10:29] agreement… [10:30] Right. [10:31] …you remember… [10:32] The Obama era nuclear… [10:33] Exactly. [10:34] When that started to be applied, Iran was complying with a number of things. [10:40] But we started seeing new stuff. [10:42] We started seeing and getting new elements that gave rise to concerns, and we were talking [10:50] about them. [10:51] We were talking about the nuclear deal with Iran. [10:54] And then it came a point, a very important point, when I said, you know, in view of this, [10:59] I have to say that I'm no longer able, I'm no longer able to say that everything is in [11:09] order. [11:10] Mm-hmm. [11:11] Because you were finding uranium in places it wasn't supposed to be, because they weren't [11:14] allowing you unfettered access. [11:16] You couldn't say clearly one way or the other. [11:18] Exactly that. [11:19] So let's come back to that. [11:20] I… [11:21] According to what you did know… [11:22] And did… [11:23] According to what you were able to declare in these IAEA reports, Iran had uranium enriched [11:27] up to 60 percent, weapons grade is 90, as I understand it. [11:30] Yeah. [11:31] And if that material remains now in Iran after combat ends, will it still have nuclear capabilities? [11:40] But has the enriched material and the centrifuges? [11:44] Well you remember, and for this I would quote or partially refer to things that have been [11:51] said in Iran by Iranians. [11:52] You remember very important officials saying, we have all the elements of the puzzle. [11:58] So when this is said, we were telling them this is unhelpful, or at least you should [12:04] explain what is, what is meant by that. [12:08] The… [12:09] It's a vast program, right? [12:13] And so, albeit the physical distraction that has been operated, acted upon, these facilities, [12:23] there's a lot going on. [12:26] And don't forget something, Margaret. [12:27] When we talk about centrifuges, when we talk about this kind of facilities, this is an [12:33] activity that can be relatively, I wouldn't say easily, but it is very possible to reconstruct [12:40] this effort. [12:41] It's mythology. [12:42] Yeah. [12:43] It's a sophisticated washing machine. [12:45] It's nothing, I mean, and you cannot unlearn what you've learned. [12:49] Right. [12:50] You can't bomb away the knowledge. [12:51] And what you've mastered. [12:52] So that capability will exist after combat. [12:53] Exactly. [12:54] And it was very sophisticated. [12:55] Let's not forget, again, referring back to JCPOA, JCPOA was based or predicated upon [13:04] a very primitive type of centrifuge. [13:07] Now Iran has the most sophisticated, fast, and efficient machine that exists. [13:15] And they know how to make it, and they know…and on top of that, there may be places out there [13:23] which are not nuclear places. [13:25] This is why what I say is that we still need to find a framework, and a great framework [13:34] that is going to be providing us with the necessary previsibility and sense of a clear [13:42] idea of where they are, where they want to go. [13:46] Because this war will not destroy Iran's nuclear ambitions and capabilities. [13:49] Anywhere. [13:50] I would say anywhere. [13:51] Anywhere. [13:52] Unless it was nuclear war and you go for destruction in an unfathomable way, which we hope, of course, [14:00] will never be the case. [14:02] Well, talk to me about the options that we know are being discussed by the United States [14:06] right now, including President Trump and Israel have talked about the potential of sending [14:10] special forces in to secure some of this enriched material. [14:14] You have been to Isfahan. [14:15] You have seen some of the underground facilities. [14:17] Yes. [14:18] How difficult would it be to move these cylinders that are there full of chemicals? [14:22] We're talking about cylinders containing gas of highly contaminated uranium hexafluoride [14:32] at 60 percent. [14:34] So it's very difficult to handle. [14:36] So much so that, for example, in terms of this negotiation, we might perhaps discuss [14:42] that a little bit, that did not bear fruit. [14:45] One of the things that we were discussing was down blending it because of its difficulty [14:50] in terms of handling. [14:51] Yes. [14:53] In the scenario, for example, of a ship out of the material, exfiltrating the material. [14:58] So it is very difficult. [15:00] Then, of course, I guess there will be a number of decoys, a number of distracting cylinders, [15:13] materials over there, which would make it very difficult. [15:14] I'm not saying it's impossible. [15:16] I know that here there are incredible military capacities to do that. [15:20] But it would be very difficult. [15:21] I'm not saying it's impossible. [15:22] I know that here there are incredible military capacities to do that. [15:23] But it would be very difficult. [15:24] I know that here there are incredible military capacities to do that. [15:25] But it would be very difficult. [15:26] I know that here there are incredible military capacities to do that. [15:27] It would be very difficult. [15:28] I know that here there are incredible military capacities to do that. [15:29] But it would be very difficult. [15:30] But I think it's a very challenging operation, for sure. [15:31] For a special – for military operation to be carried out. [15:32] But let me just ask you about one other thing. [15:33] You said about half the nuclear material was around Isfahan. [15:34] But is that right? [15:35] It's a bit more. [15:36] There is – but the majority of the material is there. [15:37] And this is not a secret, because I've seen a lot of hype about it. [15:38] This has been in our reports. [15:43] The vast majority is there. [15:45] The vast majority is there. [15:48] There is some in Natanz as well and some other parts. [15:53] There is focus on these other undeclared facilities President Trump has brought up. [15:57] There's a facility called Pickaxe Mountain, for example, that comes up. [16:01] Are you concerned about those other sites? [16:02] Well, we should visit those. [16:05] They were not operational, so this is why we hadn't. [16:08] You may remember that on the eve of the June 2025 campaign, Iran announced that they had a new enrichment facility in Isfahan. [16:19] On the same day, I issued a request for an urgent inspection, which was granted. [16:26] And the inspectors were there in the morning or the late night when the attacks happened. [16:36] So we never got to see the place. [16:38] We will have to go there eventually. [16:40] Final thought here. [16:42] Do you think President Trump supports what I heard you say, [16:46] which is that a military campaign cannot destroy Iran's nuclear program, [16:52] and that the only way to understand what they're really doing is to be on the ground inspecting it, [16:59] and that can't be done by the United States military fully either? [17:04] Well, I think, I don't know whether he would endorse this or not, [17:08] but he has said also that, of course, [17:10] the United States military is not going to be able to do that. [17:10] Diplomacy is the preferred option. [17:13] I think that is encouraging. [17:14] And we have had a very constructive conversation in the past and now. [17:22] Have you spoken to him? [17:23] Not to the president, no. [17:25] I haven't had the honor. [17:26] But I was talking to people that I had been talking to in the past, and we continue. [17:31] We continue this effort. [17:33] I think the essence of this is that in the bleakest hour, we should never lose hope. [17:40] You can see our extended conversations on our website and on our YouTube channel. [17:45] We'll be back in a moment. [17:48] We turn now to our new CBS poll with Executive Director of Elections and Surveys, Anthony Salvato. [17:54] Anthony, good to have you here. [17:55] Good morning. [17:56] So as we were discussing earlier with UN Ambassador Waltz, [17:59] the American people, they're just not sold on this war. [18:03] Their skepticism is growing. [18:05] Why? [18:05] So to evaluate a war, you need to know what the goals are, what you're comparing against. [18:10] And the American people increasingly feel like they haven't gotten a clear, [18:13] clear explanation from the administration. [18:16] So against that backdrop, I asked them, OK, what do you think it's important for the US to be doing? [18:21] The top answer was to have a quick and successful war. [18:26] But beyond that, majorities say they want to see the nuclear program in Iran stopped permanently. [18:32] They'd like to see the Iranian people be safe and free. [18:36] And really importantly, for a majority, it would not be acceptable for them to see the war end with the regime [18:43] still in place. [18:43] They'd like to see the Iranian people be in power. [18:46] Now, all those things might be incompatible with a quick war and wouldn't be the first time the public asked for a wide range of things. [18:54] There's still a collective uncertainty about whether or not the US would need to have boots on the ground, sending ground troops. [19:00] But this is important about duration of this. [19:02] There's still a lot of people who think this may take months, may take years. [19:06] And what that goes to is approval. [19:10] The longer you think this will last, the more disapproving of it you are. [19:13] That all ties up in the uncertainty, too. [19:15] That's the overseas picture. [19:17] Here at home, the most measurable thing seems to be the price at the gas pump. [19:22] How are people feeling about the economy? [19:24] They have noticed the increase in gas prices. [19:26] Of course. [19:27] Big, big number. [19:28] See, now they've gone up. [19:30] But it's the impact more broadly on the economy. [19:33] They think the war is having both a short term impact on gas prices and weakening the economy. [19:39] But also, I asked about the long term because you hear the argument out there, well, it'll just take. [19:44] Patience and let's ride this out. [19:46] But even in the long term, folks are not convinced that there's going to be an improvement in the economy and also that larger increase in gas prices. [19:55] The other part of this, too, is they see this as a war of choice as opposed to necessity. [20:03] And what that does is it comes back to this. [20:06] Are you willing to have patience right now, at least as far as gas prices are concerned? [20:11] Most people say they don't think Americans should be willing to. [20:14] Pay higher prices for it. [20:16] Anthony Salvato, thank you. [20:17] Thanks. We'll be right back. [20:21] There are at least four Americans currently detained in Iran, and two of them, Reza Valizadeh and Kamran Hekmati, have been designated by the U.S. [20:30] government as wrongfully detained. [20:32] Last week, we spoke with two men who have shared that experience of being held hostage in Iran, Siamak Namazi and Imad Shargi. [20:41] We also spoke with Neda Shargi, Imad's sister, who is now helping [20:45] with the release of other wrongful detainees. [20:47] Here's some of that conversation for the American people. [20:51] What do you want them to know, Neda, about both the Americans who were held [20:56] and the Iranians and the Iranian Americans who are back in Tehran right now? [21:03] Well, you know, I'm not an analyst. [21:05] I can give you a little bit about my own lived experience. [21:08] You know, I was born in Iran and I left [21:10] with my family during the revolution in 1979 with my parents and Imad. [21:15] And I am an American now. [21:18] But, you know, my country of birth is still very much in my heart. [21:24] And there are people in Iran who all they want is freedom and peace. [21:31] And they, you know, it's tough because here I am trying to advocate for Americans there. [21:40] But I want freedom for everyone. [21:42] And I want people of Iran to find liberation just as much. [21:47] I do want to say that [21:48] sort of to Roger's point, what happens with our American hostages, [21:53] whether they're there in Iran or in Venezuela, is that they always become [21:57] a hostage to other bigger, broader political issues. [22:01] And I wish that, [22:05] you know, Envoy Witkoff had sort of before he started engaging with the Iranians, [22:09] had said, we will not talk to you until there's an unconditional release of our Americans. [22:15] I'm not sure if that was asked or not. [22:17] But here we are. [22:18] And again, you know, these these Americans who are [22:21] innocent are again tied to this issue that's, you know, out of their control. [22:30] So I want I want Americans to know that, you know, [22:33] Kamran and Reza are just ordinary Americans who were there sort of to take care of family. [22:39] And they've been caught in this big issue. [22:41] And we need to we need to convince our [22:44] government to separate them from what's going on and and find a creative solution. [22:49] Like we did to get Emad and Siamak home, find a creative solution to bring them home. [22:56] I wonder what you but the two of you in particular would say to President Trump at a moment like this. [23:05] What I would tell the president is he has [23:09] such a great record of getting Americans home from all over the world. [23:16] I don't think any other president has managed to do what he has done in the first hundred days. [23:21] And I'm confident that if he is aware that there are Americans, [23:26] sitting in prison, that he is going to instruct people around him to put that on the agenda. [23:35] So I think it's important that he hears that that there are innocent Americans [23:42] being held like we were as political pawns. [23:48] Siamak, I completely agree with them. [23:51] And I can't imagine if President Trump knew their names and knew these cases, [23:57] they wouldn't be one of the priorities. [24:01] I would say [24:02] that it is unfortunate that they weren't priority was not given to them before. [24:08] But as I said, I personally think that there will be a time soon because all [24:15] wars end with some form of diplomacy, so I would implore President Trump to make [24:20] sure that part of those negotiations that will be coming up is bringing our people home. [24:27] That full conversation is on our website [24:28] and YouTube page and a quick note on the debate over DHS funding. [24:32] The White House sent a letter to Congress last week outlining some concessions. [24:35] They are willing to make. [24:37] Thanks for watching. I'm Margaret Brennan.