Hegseth Holds First Press Conference in Over 180 Days as Impeachment Pressure Looms — Iran War

[0:00] and it's not accountability. It's a political spectacle, a personal manifesto driven by ego [0:06] and resentment. Time for one man's final days in Congress to try to do damage to this president, [0:14] this country, and most irresponsibly, the warriors who defend it. It's a farce and it's a stunt and [0:23] everybody knows it. In the 250 years of our American Republic, no Secretary of War or Secretary [0:32] of Defense has ever been impeached for carrying out lawful military operations. And in our case, [0:41] successful ones at that. Not once. War powers resolution or not. Not under Reagan in Lebanon, [0:49] not under Clinton in Kosovo, not under Obama in Iraq and Syria, not under Biden in Iraq and Syria. [0:57] That's the standard. The history is clear and it's very straightforward. And one disgruntled [1:03] congressman wants to shred it over policy disagreements. That's what it is. Policy [1:10] disagreements. Not high crimes, not misdemeanors, not treason, not bribery, not the kinds of offenses [1:17] the founders intended when they wrote the impeachment clause. The proper remedy for a [1:23] policy disagreement, it's legislation. It's debate. It's the next presidential election. It's not handing [1:30] the House and Senate floor to the Democrats so that they can run a show trial against the president [1:37] and the secretary of war while Republicans still control Congress and should be delivering wins [1:42] for the American people. You see, we've seen this show before. They impeached President Trump over a [1:50] perfect phone call. They impeached him again in his final week in office. Both times they failed. [1:56] Both times he came back stronger. And the American people sent him back to the White House. [2:02] Now they're trying a third time. This time against a member of his cabinet. They will fail again. [2:10] And if standing with President Trump puts me in that company, I'll take that company every day [2:16] of the week. Let's be clear about what this resolution actually does. It tells our enemies, [2:23] Iran, the cartels, every adversary watching that the United States will actually punish its own warriors [2:30] and its own civilian leadership for successfully executing lawful military operations. [2:37] It tells them that a single rogue legislator loaded with personal animus for the president [2:42] can attempt to veto national security decisions made by the duly elected commander in chief. [2:49] It puts a target on the backs of American warriors by signaling that Congress will undermine [2:55] their missions in real time. This is not patriotism. This is sabotage. [3:02] You know, five years ago, America was humiliated in Kabul, Afghanistan, and every enemy on earth [3:09] took notice. But somehow, as the president pointed out yesterday, no impeachment vote for Lloyd Austin [3:16] for that terrible withdrawal. Not even one vote. Or no impeachment vote for when he went AWOL [3:23] for over a week. No impeachment vote for when he let a Chinese spy balloon fly over the country [3:29] for over a week. You see, President Trump ended that kind of wokeness and weakness, peace through strength, [3:37] not as a slogan, but as a way of war. The Houthis found out first. They fired on American ships. [3:45] Biden had let it happen. President Trump said no more. Operation Rough Rider hit them more than a thousand times. [3:51] They cried, uncle, and they stopped shooting at our ships to this day. Iran found out next. [3:59] Operation Midnight Hammer, B-2s from the heartland, halfway around the world, straight into Fordow, [4:05] Natanz, and Esfahan. Flawless. The largest and most successful B-2 strike in American history. [4:12] Nuclear sites obliterated. Later in Operation Epic Fury, by every measure, we achieved a historic [4:19] military victory. Under 40 days of sustained combat, more than 13,000 targets struck, their navy sunk, [4:28] their air force grounded, their defense industrial base gone, more than 80 percent of their nuclear [4:34] industrial base gone, their military in ruin, the ironclad blockade unbroken. We control the [4:43] Strait of Hormuz. Crazy Islamists in Tehran will never, ever have a nuclear weapon. A historic effort [4:50] only made possible by a courageous commander-in-chief. History will judge the Iran war quite differently [4:58] than conventional wisdom right now. We didn't start this war. Iran did 47 years ago. But President [5:05] Trump is willing to do what no other president would. He did the tough right thing, not for politics, [5:14] but for the safety and the security of the American people. That's leadership. He did not kick the can. [5:21] He kicked their teeth in. For generation, my generation fought other Middle Eastern wars that [5:30] dragged on for years, for decades. We lost thousands, thousands of Americans. I wear the bracelet of [5:40] one of them on my left wrist every single day. It reminds me. And may I remind you, for perspective, [5:50] we lost 60,000 Americans in Vietnam over 20 years. We lost 37,000 in Korea in just three years. [6:04] That many humans are lost on the front lines of Ukraine and Russia every month. This epic fury [6:13] has never been that, and it never will be. The media can just never admit the military success [6:21] because they, you, hate the president more than you love our country or our troops. Then in our [6:30] own hemisphere, we started at home. From day one, President Trump made homeland security, national [6:35] security. We sent American troops to lock down the southwest border and choked off the cartel pipeline [6:41] of human smuggling, of drugs, and death. And then we took the fight to them. The cartels thought they [6:49] could just poison the American people and hide from justice. So we formed a counter-cartel [6:54] coalition, designated them terrorists, and hunted them at sea, and now on land. More than 70 narco [7:02] vessels sunk. 218 narco terrorists dead where they should be. Maritime smuggling down at least 65% [7:12] and dropping even further. Thousands of American lives saved with every drug boat sunk and every shipment [7:20] prevented. Indicted and wanted, Nicolas Maduro thought he was untouchable. He was not kidnapped. He was [7:32] brought to justice by America's best. Victory in one night. Victory in 48 minutes, to be precise. [7:39] And today he sits in front of an American judge in New York City. Flawless success. Panama kicked China's [7:48] Belt and Road Initiative to the curb, and we, along with them, control the canal. The message is simple. [7:54] This is our hemisphere. Act accordingly. Our NATO allies, after decades of riding on the American [8:01] taxpayer in Europe, committed to 5% of GDP for their own defense. Our allies are finally stepping up. [8:10] Out with being a burden, in with burden sharing. Why? Because President Trump demanded it. America is the [8:19] only country on earth, and this military, the only one that could successfully, could successfully [8:23] execute and lead all of these operations and efforts. Sheer success. Victories in both Venezuela [8:31] and Iran. Energy security in our hemisphere, in a way none thought possible for a generation. And no [8:40] nuclear bomb for Iran, ever. But of course, security doesn't come free. Nobody was lost in the mission [8:48] in Venezuela, but 18 Americans have given their lives in Operation Epic Fury. We know their names. [8:54] I've been to Dover. We honor them every day, but their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve. As it happens, [9:04] tomorrow is Veterans Day. This year, the operators of Absolute Resolve and the warriors of Epic Fury [9:10] will mark it for the first time. They stand shoulder to shoulder with the pilots of Midnight Hammer, [9:16] and the sailors of Rough Rider who went before them. They answered the call. They executed. They won. [9:24] And on the eve of Veterans Day, these resolutions tell every one of them that their service was a crime. [9:35] Their service was not a crime. These are heroes. And no politician in Washington will tell them [9:41] otherwise while I hold this office. President Trump gave this department what it has not had in a [9:48] generation. A commander in chief with the courage to lead and the resolve to win. I stand behind every [9:55] one of these operations. I was proud to execute them, and I would do it again tomorrow. And while this [10:03] defeated politician, defeated ironically by a Navy SEAL, I might add, while this defeated politician [10:10] drafts articles of impeachment, we've delivered the first increase and a big one in hostile fire and [10:16] imminent danger pay in more than 20 years. We've reinstated over 600 service members who were [10:21] forced out under the previous administration's COVID mandate. All five of our services broke historic [10:28] recruiting records – the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Space Force, the Marines – for two years [10:33] in a row. In fact, the Marines in FY27 met half of their goal on day one. Americans are lining up to serve [10:40] in President Trump's Department of War. And by the way, to those Marines and all those Marines out there, [10:46] Semper Fi and happy 251st birthday today. Two years of historic recruitment after Biden couldn't [10:55] recruit anyone. Same with retention, by the way, through the roof. That means the troops that are in [11:02] are staying in the best of the best based on merit staying in night and day from Biden to Trump. We cut [11:10] unnecessary senior officer billets by 20% and raised combat performance standards. Through the one big, [11:15] beautiful bill, we're investing in troop pay and housing and health care and advanced weapons and [11:20] equipment our warfighters actually need to win. That's the record. That's what we're defending. [11:29] Make no mistake about what is happening. This is not about me. Politicians in Washington [11:37] have accused the sailors and the pilots who struck narco-terrorist boats of war crimes for doing their [11:45] job. Senators in cute videos have suggested the same. This resolution is the next step. Put the [11:54] secretary on trial today and the men and women who carried out those orders tomorrow. If they want to [12:02] come for the warriors, they're going to have to come through me. As for the articles themselves, Iran, [12:13] the cartels, Maduro, Yemen, everyone was a lawful operation ordered by the commander in chief, [12:20] then ordered by myself, notified to Congress and executed by American warriors who did their jobs. [12:28] We destroyed terror regimes capabilities. We sank the boats carrying poison into our communities. [12:34] We put a narco dictator in handcuffs. These are not high crimes. This is the job. And it's the job [12:43] well done. For the first time in American history, a cabinet secretary overseeing America's military [12:51] is being attacked not for losing conflicts with our enemies, but for winning them. Condemned not for [12:59] defeat, but for military victory. The disgruntled congressman even admitted this himself yesterday. [13:07] No failure here. Just impeachment for success. As to the claim that the American military targets [13:16] civilians. Well, that is a lie. And that is a slander against every professional who flew, [13:22] sailed and fought on these missions. The only people who target civilians are the terrorists [13:28] that we hunt. And I will dignify this claim no further. None of these are high crimes or misdemeanors. [13:35] They're partisan policy disagreements from people who want to politicize our military. We will not [13:42] apologize for putting American lives first. We will not apologize for stopping the flow of drugs that [13:49] kill our citizens. We will not apologize for destroying the capabilities of a regime that chants [13:55] death to America. And if that regime makes one wrong move, as the president said, [14:02] we remain locked and loaded with the full weight and lethality of central command. We will not [14:09] apologize for restoring a military that recruits based on merit, restores real standards, and fights [14:16] to win. These resolutions are a farce. They mock the constitution, they attack the chain of command, [14:24] and they criminalize the war fighters who execute lawful orders. This process hands our adversaries a [14:31] propaganda victory and waste the time of Congress that should instead be focused on protecting the [14:37] American people. We will continue to do the job the American people elected President Trump to do, [14:43] protect this country, defeat our enemies, and rebuild the military worthy of the warriors who wear [14:49] the uniform. I pray each day, and I hope you do too, for our troops. They are the best of our nation. [14:59] Like the president, I will defend them with every fiber of my being every single day. That includes [15:07] having their back no matter what. So to the troops, as I've said before, don't blink, ignore the noise, [15:16] never hesitate. This is all politics. You do real things. Stay the course. May almighty God protect them [15:26] always. And may our actions today and every day bring glory to him. We will stand. [15:35] We will fight and we will defend this republic against all enemies, foreign and domestic. [15:43] And amen. And with that, I'll take a few questions. Alexander, go ahead. [15:49] Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Excuse me. [15:53] There's been some reporting of the IRGC rearming in this interim period of ceasefire that has proliferated [15:59] behind the blockade. And the president has signaled that we may not resume kinetic operations. So my [16:07] question is, how will the IRGC remain degraded per the Epic Fury objectives if we are not resuming this [16:14] kinetic activity? And then how confident are you in maintaining nuclear degradation of Iran? [16:20] Well, we can maintain oversight and nuclear degradation, as the president has talked about. [16:25] We're able to maintain oversight and visibility of those nuclear sites. And if we saw the kind of [16:29] nefarious activity that required action, we would take it. The president has made it clear about what we [16:33] can see from space and what we can read on their name tapes. So we will watch that on a lot of levels [16:39] very, very closely. As far as the blockade is concerned, it's been ironclad. Nothing has gotten [16:43] through. When you can't fund your energy economy, you have to make very difficult choices. And when [16:48] you combine that with almost no defense industrial base and a limited nuclear industrial base and the [16:53] damage that was done before that, their ability to reconstitute is much less than ours. So we know [16:59] they'll attempt to. This is the number one, the world's number one state sponsor of terrorism, [17:04] um, committed to terrorism. They're built tunnels and caves and all. We know that they're going to [17:08] attempt to reconstitute. We know that we are in a much stronger position nonetheless, uh, going forward. [17:13] Absolutely. Yes. Mr. Secretary, David Zier, Real America's Voice. How does it make you feel? And what kind [17:19] of message does it send to our allies, um, in the counter-cartel coalition when our own politicians [17:26] don't support taking out the narco-traffickers that kill their own constituents? And, um, these [17:32] countries joined us even after, almost a year after the boat strikes commenced. And they, they are on [17:38] board with us. These countries that joined the America's counter-cartel coalition, the ACCC, [17:43] didn't just join us and they didn't join us reluctantly. They joined us proudly and boldly [17:48] and quickly because we, they, what they saw first was leadership from the president. They saw a [17:53] president reestablishing the Monroe Doctrine, the Trump corollary. We will both stop narco-terrorists [17:58] in our hemisphere and expel malign foreign influence. That's what these countries have [18:02] wanted. They just haven't had the leadership and they haven't had capabilities. So when they saw us [18:06] taking the lead with Southern Spear on the drug boats, when they saw the operation, uh, with Nicolas [18:11] Maduro, they saw what we were capable of on the blockade around Venezuela. They said, we want in on [18:16] that. That's American leadership. We don't want China and Russia and Iran dominating our hemisphere. We, [18:21] we'd rather have America be our defense partner and commercial partner of choice. And so the [18:27] counter-cartel coalition has grown very quickly, uh, because of that. But you're onto an important [18:32] point also. When our politicians want to play political games insinuating that our troops may [18:38] be committing war crimes or they're not following the law when everything, uh, has been lawful from day [18:43] one, they start to sow doubt or attempt to sow doubt. And that's the same kind of doubt they want to sow [18:48] inside our partners of the ACCC as well. If you go after these cartel members in your country, [18:53] maybe someone will go after you later. And so we're working really hard with these countries [18:58] to prevent that kind of lawfare, to make sure they can get after these drug cartels that have [19:04] decimated their communities. And it's the one wonderful thing about the ACCC is it's, [19:09] it's mutually beneficial. They get to save their countries and take their streets back. We get to [19:13] prevent drugs and gangs from coming to our country. Both sides win in that dynamic. I really appreciate [19:19] that question. Thank you, sir. Uh, it sounds like you feel confident in the president's support. [19:23] Is that accurate? And, uh, as another one, how do you feel about Stephen Miller becoming the new chief [19:28] of staff? Are you looking forward to working with him in that capacity? I let the president speak for [19:32] himself and I'm grateful for his support. We've never had a better commander in chief full stop. I get [19:37] to watch him every single day. He lives and breathes America first, and it's the honor of a lifetime to be his [19:43] secretary of war. Uh, any day he'll have me, I'll be right here at this podium. [19:47] As far as Stephen Miller's concerned, uh, uh, he is an incredible American patriot and a great friend [19:53] of this department. We wouldn't have an ACCC in America's counter cartel coalition without Stephen [19:58] Miller. We wouldn't have a secure southwest border for 18 months without what Stephen Miller has enabled. [20:03] So he has, uh, we've got no better friend at the department of war than Stephen Miller. He'll be a [20:08] fantastic chief of staff. He understands the president's agenda. He will stand. He will fight. [20:13] And defend this Republic. And we're proud to be right there with him all the way. Absolutely. Yes. [20:19] Chuck Schumer said yesterday that he wants to put you on trial. Um, [20:22] are you expecting this in the next Congress? And I mean, what's that going to look like when [20:27] Democrats take control? I mean, what it's, it's what happens when you put people with ideological [20:32] agendas in charge of institutions. Uh, if they want to talk about America's or excuse me, [20:38] President Trump's foreign policy and national security record, let's do it. I'll see you there. [20:43] Let's have a conversation about the success that I outlined here, which for partisan reasons, [20:47] they want to take issue with. But the, uh, the ability for America to project power and ensure [20:52] security, the American people has never been better than it is right here today. And I can tell you, [20:56] if you walk inside our formations, and I would encourage many of you to do that and you talk to [21:00] the troops, they feel more empowered, more enabled, more backed than, than they ever have. So if you want to [21:06] talk about that, talk about our recruiting success, talk about the, the military operations that we've [21:12] undertaken successfully, uh, I'd, I'd welcome that conversation, no doubt. [21:18] Mr. Secretary, Vice President J.D. Vance says the Iran War was a major reason why the Republicans [21:24] lost in the midterms. Do you agree? [21:25] Uh, I respect the Vice President greatly, and I'm certainly not going to, uh, exchange in any finger [21:30] pointing. And thankfully, politics is not really my thing. Uh, I do the Department of War and making [21:35] sure we're prepared and ready. Uh, so a lot of people are going to look at the conflict, uh, and, [21:39] and assess it. And the Vice President has been a critical member of the team in every aspect of [21:44] this. And we're grateful for all the input he's given me personally, uh, in our department. And I [21:48] think, uh, going forward, we're going to learn all those lessons and apply them. But I, I agree with [21:54] what the President said when he said, hey, if, if, if I had to do this all over again, would we do it again? [21:58] Absolutely. It's, it, it was done for the right reasons to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. [22:04] Um, they're, it, as, as Marco Rubio said, I think quite well, it's not necessarily, uh, popular, [22:10] but it may have been necessary. And that's certainly how I feel it was a necessary undertaking. [22:14] Secretary Hanks, a question on the impeachment effort, uh, Secretary Hanks, a question on the [22:19] impeachment effort and a question on the war. On the impeachment effort, have you been making calls [22:23] to allies on Capitol Hill, uh, to get support during this impeachment effort? And also, on the war, [22:30] it's been reported that Stephen Miller pitched himself for the job of chief of staff, uh, on the [22:34] promise that he would end the Iran war. Have you spoken to Stephen Miller about that? [22:38] Well, I talked to Stephen Miller about a lot of things, uh, at, but he's, he's busy in his new [22:42] role right now. And I look forward to meeting with him soon in particular about the ways that we'll, [22:46] we'll work together. Uh, what was the first question again? [22:48] The first question was on the impeachment effort. Have you been making calls to Capitol Hill? [22:52] Well, thankfully, I think what people misunderstand is the depth of partnership and work that we have done, [22:57] uh, with House Republicans and Senate Republicans and others that are reached, willing to reach [23:01] across the aisle. I mean, our Ledge Affairs team has been very active, obviously, working with Speaker [23:05] Johnson, who's done a fantastic job, and the whip, Tom Emmer. Uh, we've been in touch with a lot of [23:10] members. There, there's a, there's a ton of support. There's also an understanding that this is one [23:14] disgruntled guy who drew up some really flimsy articles that aren't grounded and actually in the [23:19] Constitution or things that are high crimes and misdemeanors. And so whether they love everything [23:23] that's been done, they're, they don't want to vote for something that isn't real. So I'm grateful [23:28] that Republicans have been taking a, a real look at this and the Speaker has led on it. And, and, [23:32] uh, I appreciate that a lot. [23:33] Mr. Secretary. [23:34] Mike Glenn. [23:34] Yes, sir. Uh, yes. Thank you, sir. Uh, you know, uh, the impeachment notwithstanding, [23:40] the Democrats are going to run the House and the Senate next year. Are you making any kind of moves [23:45] or any kind to, uh, to reach out to them to, you know, to try to make some sort of conciliatory piece, [23:51] you know, by your means for next year? I would say this again, something else that gets, [23:55] appreciate the question that gets misconstrued often is that we're somehow disengaged from [23:59] Capitol Hill or we're not briefing Capitol Hill or we're not talking to Republicans or we're not [24:02] talking to Democrats. We've got civilian leaders and uniform leaders up on Capitol Hill all the time. [24:08] That has been the case. And that will be the case with Republicans and with Democrats. [24:12] And right now we're flooding the zone because this lame duck period is critically important for funding [24:17] of our department. Uh, 350 billion at a minimum for reconciliation is what we believe is needed to make [24:23] a generational and historic investment in this department, something our, our warfighters need. [24:27] So you, you talk about this circus that one congressman has tried to unleash. Like, that's one small [24:34] thing over here that we deal with. It's, it's, it's, it's nothing compared to what we're actually [24:39] engaged in and dealing with, which is ensuring operationally we're prepared all around the globe. [24:44] And then we get the funding for the troops that they need. And we're working with Speaker Johnson. [24:48] We're working with leader Thune. We're working to all the Republicans to try to take this opportunity. [24:52] We know the Democrats won't do it. Sadly, I wish they would, uh, to take this opportunity to try [24:57] to fund the troops in a way that ensures we dominate at every domain for decades to come, [25:02] which is ultimately my job. My job's not, uh, to litigate all of this every day. It's to ensure [25:08] we're funded and funded properly, which is what the president expects every single day. [25:12] Thank you very much. Appreciate your time. Thank you. I'll get right to it. [25:20] What one disgruntled and defeated Congressman is attempting is not oversight and it's not [25:28] accountability. It's a political spectacle, a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment. [25:35] Time for one man's final days in Congress to try to do damage to this president, this country, [25:42] and most irresponsibly the warriors who defend it. It's a farce and it's a stunt and everybody knows [25:51] it. In the 250 years of our American Republic, no secretary of war or secretary of defense has ever [26:00] been impeached for carrying out lawful military operations. And in our case, successful ones at that, [26:11] not once war powers resolution or not, not under Reagan in Lebanon, not under Clinton in Kosovo, [26:18] not under Obama in Iraq and Syria, not under Biden in Iraq and Syria. That's the standard. [26:25] The history is clear and it's very straightforward. And one disgruntled Congressman wants to shred it [26:32] over policy disagreements. That's what it is. Policy disagreements, not high crimes, [26:39] not misdemeanors, not treason, not bribery, not the kinds of offenses the founders intended when [26:45] they wrote the impeachment clause. The proper remedy for a policy disagreement, it's legislation. [26:52] It's debate. It's the next presidential election. It's not handing the House and Senate floor to the [26:59] Democrats so that they can run a show trial against the president and the secretary of war while [27:05] Republicans still control Congress and should be delivering wins for the American people. [27:11] You see, we've seen this show before. They impeached President Trump over a perfect phone call. [27:18] They impeached him again in his final week in office. Both times they failed. Both times he came back [27:25] stronger and the American people sent him back to the White House. Now they're trying a third time, [27:32] this time against a member of his cabinet. They will fail again. And if standing with President Trump [27:39] puts me in that company, I'll take that company every day of the week. Let's be clear about what [27:46] this resolution actually does. It tells our enemies, Iran, the cartels, every adversary watching that the [27:53] United States will actually punish its own warriors and its own civilian leadership for successfully [28:00] executing lawful military operations. It tells them that a single rogue legislator loaded with personal [28:08] animus for the president can attempt to veto national security decisions made by the duly elected [28:14] commander in chief. It puts a target on the backs of American warriors by signaling that Congress will [28:21] undermine their missions in real time. This is not patriotism. This is sabotage. You know, five years [28:31] ago, America was humiliated in Kabul, Afghanistan, and every enemy on earth took notice. But somehow, as the [28:38] president pointed out yesterday, no impeachment vote for Lloyd Austin for that terrible withdrawal, not [28:45] even one vote, or no impeachment vote for when he went AWOL for over a week. No impeachment vote for when he let a [28:54] Chinese spy balloon fly over the country for over a week. See, President Trump ended that kind of wokeness and [29:00] weakness, peace through strength, not as a slogan, but as a way of war. The Houthis found out first, they fired on [29:10] American ships. Biden had let it happen. President Trump said no more. Operation Rough Rider hit them [29:16] more than a thousand times. They cried, uncle, and they stopped shooting at our ships to this day. Iran found [29:25] out next. Operation Midnight Hammer, B2s from the heartland, halfway around the world, straight into Fordow, [29:31] Natanz, and Esfahan. Flawless. The largest and most successful B2 strike in American history. Nuclear sites [29:40] obliterated. Later in Operation Epic Fury, by every measure, we achieved a historic military victory. [29:47] Under 40 days of sustained combat. More than 13,000 targets struck. Their navy sunk. Their air force [29:55] grounded. Their defense industrial base, gone. More than 80 percent of their nuclear industrial base, [30:02] gone. Their military in ruin. The ironclad blockade, unbroken. We control the Strait of Hormuz. Crazy [30:11] Islamists in Tehran will never, ever have a nuclear weapon. A historic effort only made possible [30:19] by a courageous commander in chief. History will judge the Iran war quite differently than conventional [30:26] wisdom right now. We didn't start this war. Iran did 47 years ago. But President Trump is willing to [30:33] do what no other president would. He did the tough right thing. Not for politics, but for the safety and [30:42] the security of the American people. That's leadership. He did not kick the can. He kicked [30:50] their teeth in. For generation, my generation, fought other Middle Eastern wars that dragged on [30:57] for years, for decades. We lost thousands, thousands of Americans. I wear the bracelet of one of them on my [31:08] left wrist every single day. It reminds me. And may I remind you, for perspective, we lost 60,000 Americans [31:21] in Vietnam over 20 years. We lost 37,000 in Korea in just three years. That many humans are lost on the [31:33] front lines of Ukraine and Russia every month. This epic fury has never been that. And it never will be. [31:44] The media can just never admit the military success because they, you hate the president more than [31:52] you love our country or our troops. Then in our own hemisphere, we started at home from day one. [31:59] President Trump made homeland security, national security. We sent American troops to lock down [32:04] the southwest border and choked off the cartel pipeline of human smuggling of drugs and death. And then [32:12] we took the fight to them. The cartels thought they could just poison the American people and hide from [32:18] justice. So we formed a counter cartel coalition, designated them terrorists and hunted them at sea. [32:25] And now on land, more than 70 narco vessels sunk. 218 narco terrorists dead where they should be. [32:35] Maritime smuggling down at least 65% and dropping even further. [32:40] Thousands of American lives saved with every drug boat sunk and every shipment prevented. Indicted and [32:50] wanted, Nicolas Maduro thought he was untouchable. He was not kidnapped. He was brought to justice [33:00] by America's best. Victory in one night, victory in 48 minutes to be precise. And today he sits in front [33:07] of an American judge in New York City. Flawless success. Panama kicked China's Belt and Road [33:15] initiative to the curb. And we, along with them, control the canal. The message is simple. This is [33:21] our hemisphere. Act accordingly. Our NATO allies, after decades of riding on the American taxpayer in Europe, [33:30] committed to 5% of GDP for their own defense. Our allies are finally stepping up. Out with being a burden, [33:39] in with burden sharing. Why? Because President Trump demanded it. America is the only country on earth [33:47] and this military, the only one that could successfully, could successfully execute and lead [33:52] all of these operations and efforts. Sheer success. Victories in both Venezuela and Iran. Energy security [34:01] in our hemisphere in a way none thought possible for a generation. And no nuclear bomb for Iran ever. [34:09] But of course, security doesn't come free. Nobody was lost in the mission in Venezuela, [34:16] but 18 Americans have given their lives in Operation Epic Fury. We know their names. I've been to Dover. [34:23] We honor them every day. But their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve. As it happens, tomorrow is [34:32] Veterans Day. This year, the operators of Absolute Resolve and the warriors of Epic Fury were market for [34:38] the first time. They stand shoulder to shoulder with the pilots of Midnight Hammer and the sailors of [34:44] Rough Rider who went before them. They answered the call. They executed. They won. And on the eve of [34:52] Veterans Day, these resolutions tell every one of them that their service was a crime. Their service was [35:02] not a crime. These are heroes. And no politician in Washington will tell them otherwise while I hold this [35:10] office. President Trump gave this department what it has not had in a generation. A commander in chief [35:16] with the courage to lead and the resolve to win. I stand behind every one of these operations. I was [35:24] proud to execute them. And I would do it again tomorrow. And while this defeated politician, defeated [35:32] ironically by a Navy SEAL, I might add, while this defeated politician drafts articles of impeachment, [35:39] we've delivered the first increase and a big one in hostile fire and imminent danger pay in more than [35:44] 20 years. We've reinstated over 600 service members who were forced out under the previous [35:49] administration's COVID mandate. All five of our services broke historic recruiting records. The [35:55] Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Space Force, the Marines for two years in a row. In fact, the Marines [36:01] in FY27 met half of their goal on day one. Americans are lining up to serve in President Trump's [36:08] Department of War. And by the way, to those Marines and all those Marines out there, Semper Fi and happy [36:14] 251st birthday today. Two years of historic recruitment after Biden couldn't recruit anyone. [36:24] Same with retention, by the way, through the roof. That means the troops that are in are staying in the [36:29] best of the best based on merit staying in night and day from Biden to Trump. We cut unnecessary [36:37] senior officer billets by 20% and raised combat performance standards. Through the one big, [36:42] beautiful bill, we're investing in troop pay and housing and health care and advanced weapons [36:47] and equipment our warfighters actually need to win. That's the record. That's what we're defending. [36:55] Make no mistake about what is happening. This is not about me. Politicians in Washington have accused [37:04] the sailors and the pilots who struck narco terrorist boats of war crimes for doing their job. Senators [37:14] in cute videos have suggested the same. This resolution is the next step. Put the secretary [37:21] on trial today and the men and women who carried out those orders tomorrow. If they want to come for [37:30] the warriors, they're going to have to come through me. As for the articles themselves, Iran, the cartels, [37:42] Maduro, Yemen, everyone was a lawful operation ordered by the commander in chief, then ordered by [37:49] myself, notified to Congress and executed by American warriors who did their jobs. We destroyed terror [37:56] regimes capabilities. We sank the boats carrying poison into our communities. We put a narco dictator in [38:02] handcuffs. These are not high crimes. This is the job and it's the job well done. For the first time in [38:13] American history, a cabinet secretary overseeing America's military is being attacked not for losing [38:20] conflicts with our enemies, but for winning them. Condemned not for defeat, but for military victory. [38:29] The disgruntled congressman even admitted this himself yesterday. No failure here, [38:36] just impeachment for success. As to the claim that the American military targets civilians, [38:44] well that is a lie and that is a slander against every professional who flew, sailed and fought [38:50] on these missions. The only people who target civilians are the terrorists that we hunt. And I will [38:56] dignify this claim no further. None of these are high crimes or misdemeanors. They're partisan policy [39:04] disagreements from people who want to politicize our military. We will not apologize for putting [39:11] American lives first. We will not apologize for stopping the flow of drugs that kill our citizens. [39:18] We will not apologize for destroying the capabilities of a regime that chants death to America. And if that [39:25] regime makes one wrong move, as the president said, we remain locked and loaded with the full weight and [39:32] lethality of central command. We will not apologize for restoring a military that recruits based on [39:39] merit, restores real standards, and fights to win. These resolutions are a farce. They mock the [39:48] constitution, they attack the chain of command, and they criminalize the warfighters who execute lawful [39:54] orders. This process hands our adversaries a propaganda victory and wastes the time of congress that should [40:02] instead be focused on protecting the American people. We will continue to do the job the American [40:08] people elected President Trump to do. Protect this country, defeat our enemies, and rebuild the military [40:14] worthy of the warriors who wear the uniform. I pray each day, and I hope you do too, for our troops. [40:23] They are the best of our nation. Like the president, I will defend them with every fiber of my being [40:30] every single day. That includes having their back no matter what. So to the troops, as I've said before, [40:39] don't blink. Ignore the noise. Never hesitate. This is all politics. You do real things. Stay the course. [40:51] May almighty God protect them always. And may our actions today and every day bring glory to him. [41:00] We will stand. We will fight. And we will defend this republic against all enemies, foreign and domestic. [41:10] And amen. And with that, I'll take a few questions. Alexander, go ahead. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. [41:20] There's been some reporting of the IRGC rearming in this interim period of ceasefire that has [41:26] proliferated behind the blockade. And the president has signaled that we may not resume kinetic operations. [41:33] So my question is, how will the IRGC remain degraded per the Epic Fury objectives if we are not [41:40] resuming this kinetic activity? And then how confident are you in maintaining nuclear degradation of Iran? [41:47] Well, we can maintain oversight in nuclear degradation, as the president has talked about. [41:52] We're able to maintain oversight and visibility of those nuclear sites. And if we saw the kind of [41:56] nefarious activity that required action, we would take it. The president has made it clear about what [42:00] we can see from space and what we can read on their name tapes. So we will watch that [42:04] on a lot of levels very, very closely. As far as the blockade is concerned, it's been ironclad. [42:09] Nothing has gotten through. When you can't fund your energy economy, you have to make very difficult [42:14] choices. And when you combine that with almost no defense industrial base and a limited nuclear [42:19] industrial base and the damage that was done before that, their ability to reconstitute is much less [42:24] than ours. So we know they'll attempt to. This is the number one, the world's number one state [42:30] sponsor of terrorism, committed to terrorism, built tunnels and caves and all. We know that [42:34] they're going to attempt to reconstitute. We know that we are in a much stronger position nonetheless [42:39] going forward. Absolutely. Yes. [42:41] Mr. Secretary, David Zier, Real America's Voice. How does it make you feel and what kind of message [42:47] does it send to our allies in the counter-cartel coalition when our own politicians don't support [42:54] taking out the narco-traffickers that kill their own constituents? And these countries joined us even [43:00] after, almost a year after the boat strikes commenced. And they are on board with us. [43:06] These countries that joined the America's counter-cartel coalition, the ACCC, didn't just join us and [43:11] they didn't join us reluctantly. They joined us proudly and boldly and quickly because what they [43:17] saw first was leadership from the president. They saw a president reestablishing the Monroe Doctrine, [43:22] the Trump corollary, we will both stop narco-terrorists in our hemisphere and expel malign foreign [43:27] influence. That's what these countries have wanted. They just haven't had the leadership and they [43:31] haven't had capabilities. So when they saw us taking the lead with Southern Spear on the drug boats, [43:35] when they saw the operation with Nicolas Maduro, they saw what we were capable of on the blockade [43:41] around Venezuela. They said, we want in on that. That's American leadership. We don't want China [43:46] and Russia and Iran dominating our hemisphere. We'd rather have America be our defense partner [43:51] and commercial partner of choice. And so the counter-cartel coalition has grown very quickly [43:57] because of that. But you're onto an important point also. When our politicians want to play political [44:02] games insinuating that our troops may be committing war crimes or they're not following the law when [44:07] everything has been lawful from day one, they start to sow doubt or attempt to sow doubt. And that's [44:13] the same kind of doubt they want to sow inside our partners of the ACCC is, well, if you go after [44:19] these cartel members in your country, maybe someone will go after you later. And so we're working really [44:23] hard with these countries to prevent that kind of lawfare, to make sure they can get after these drug [44:30] cartels that have decimated their communities. And it's the one wonderful thing about the ACCC is it's [44:35] it's mutually beneficial. They get to save their countries and take their streets back. [44:40] We get to prevent drugs and gangs from coming to our country. Both sides win in that dynamic. [44:45] I really appreciate that question. Thank you, sir. It sounds like you feel [44:48] confident in the president's support. Is that accurate? And as another one, how do you feel about [44:54] Stephen Miller becoming the new chief of staff? Are you looking forward to working with him in that [44:57] capacity? I let the president speak for himself and I'm grateful for his support. We've never had a [45:02] better commander in chief, full stop. I get to watch him every single day. He lives and breathes [45:07] America first. And it's the honor of a lifetime to be his secretary of war. Any day he'll have me, [45:12] I'll be right here at this podium. As far as Stephen Miller's concerned, he is an incredible American [45:19] patriot and a great friend of this department. We wouldn't have an ACCC in America's counter cartel [45:23] coalition without Stephen Miller. We wouldn't have a secure southwest border for 18 months without what [45:28] Stephen Miller has enabled. So he has, we've got no better friend at the department of war [45:33] than Stephen Miller. He'll be a fantastic chief of staff. He understands the president's agenda. [45:38] He will stand, he will fight, and defend this republic. And we're proud to be right there with him [45:42] all the way. Absolutely. Yes. Chuck Schumer said yesterday that he wants to put you on trial. [45:49] Are you expecting this in the next Congress? And I mean, what's that going to look like when [45:53] Democrats take control? I don't know. I mean, it's what happens when you put people with [45:58] ideological agendas in charge of institutions. If they want to talk about America's, excuse me, [46:04] President Trump's foreign policy and national security record, let's do it. I'll see you there. [46:10] Let's have a conversation about the success that I outlined here, which for partisan reasons they [46:14] want to take issue with. But the ability for America to project power and ensure security of [46:19] the American people has never been better than it is right here today. And I can tell you, if you walk [46:24] inside our formations, and I would encourage many of you to do that, and you talk to the troops, [46:27] the troops, they feel more empowered, more enabled, more backed than they ever have. [46:32] So if you want to talk about that, talk about our recruiting success, talk about the military [46:38] operations that we've undertaken successfully, I'd welcome that conversation, no doubt. [46:42] Mr. Secretary, Vice President J.D. Vance says the Iran war was a major reason why the Republicans lost in the midterms. [46:51] Do you agree? [46:52] I respect the Vice President greatly, and I'm certainly not going to exchange any finger [46:57] pointing. And thankfully, politics is not really my thing. I do the Department of War, [47:01] making sure we're prepared and ready. So a lot of people are going to look at the conflict and assess [47:06] it. And the Vice President has been a critical member of the team in every aspect of this, [47:11] and we're grateful for all the input he's given me personally in our department. And I think going [47:16] forward, we're going to learn all those lessons and apply them. But I agree with what the President [47:21] said when he said, hey, if I had to do this all over again, would we do it again? Absolutely. It was [47:27] done for the right reasons to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. As Marco Rubio said, I think [47:33] quite well, it's not necessarily popular, but it may have been necessary. And that's certainly how I feel [47:39] it was a necessary undertaking. [47:41] Secretary Hanks, a question on the impeachment effort and a question on the war. On the impeachment [47:49] effort, have you been making calls to allies on Capitol Hill to get support during this impeachment [47:54] effort? And also on the war, it's been reported that Stephen Miller pitched himself for the job of [48:00] chief of staff on the promise that he would end the Iran war. Have you spoken to Stephen Miller about that? [48:05] Well, I talked to Stephen Miller about a lot of things, [48:07] but he's busy in his new role right now, and I look forward to meeting with him soon, [48:11] in particular, about the ways that we'll work together. What was the first question again? [48:15] The first question was on the impeachment effort. Have you been making calls to Capitol Hill? [48:18] Well, thankfully, I think what people misunderstand is the depth of partnership and work that we have [48:23] done with House Republicans and Senate Republicans and others that are willing to reach across the [48:28] aisle. I mean, our Ledge Affairs team has been very active, obviously, working with Speaker Johnson, [48:33] who's done a fantastic job, and the whip, Tom Emmer. We've been in touch with a lot of [48:37] members. There's a ton of support. There's also an understanding that this is one disgruntled guy [48:42] who drew up some really flimsy articles that aren't grounded actually in the Constitution, [48:47] or things that are high crimes and misdemeanors. And so whether they love everything that's been [48:51] done, they don't want to vote for something that isn't real. So I'm grateful that Republicans have [48:55] been taking a real look at this, and the Speaker has led on it, and I appreciate that. [48:59] Mike Glenn. [49:03] Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. You know, the impeachment notwithstanding, the Democrats are going to run [49:08] the House and the Senate next year. Are you making any kind of moves or any kind to reach out to them [49:14] to, you know, to try to make some sort of conciliatory piece, you know, about your needs for next year? [49:20] I would say this. Again, something else that gets, appreciate the question, that gets misconstrued [49:24] often is that we're somehow disengaged from Capitol Hill, that we're not briefing Capitol Hill, [49:28] that we're not talking to Republicans, that we're not talking to Democrats. We've got civilian [49:31] leaders and uniformed leaders up on Capitol Hill all the time. That has been the case, [49:36] and that will be the case with Republicans and with Democrats. And right now we're flooding the [49:40] zone because this lame duck period is critically important for funding of our department. $350 [49:46] billion at a minimum for reconciliation is what we believe is needed to make a generational and [49:51] historic investment in this department, something our warfighters need. You talk about this circus that [49:58] one congressman has tried to unleash. Like, that's one small thing over here that we deal with. It's [50:04] nothing compared to what we're actually engaged and dealing with, which is ensuring operationally [50:09] we're prepared all around the globe. And then we get the funding for the troops that they need. [50:13] And we're working with Speaker Johnson, we're working with Leader Thune, we're working to [50:17] all the Republicans to try to take this opportunity. We know the Democrats won't do it, sadly. I wish they [50:21] would to take this opportunity to try to fund the troops in a way that ensures we dominate at every [50:27] domain for decades to come, which is ultimately my job. My job is not to litigate all of this every day. [50:34] It's to ensure we're funded and funded properly, which is what the president expects every single day. [50:39] Thank you very much. Appreciate your time. Thank you. I'll get right to it. What one disgruntled and [50:46] defeated congressman is attempting is not oversight and it's not accountability. It's a political [50:53] spectacle, a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment. Time for one man's final days in [51:01] Congress to try to do damage to this president, this country, and most irresponsibly, the warriors [51:08] who defend it. It's a farce and it's a stunt and everybody knows it. In the 250 years of our American [51:19] Republic, no secretary of war or secretary of defense has ever been impeached for carrying out [51:26] lawful military operations. And in our case, successful ones at that, not once. War powers [51:36] resolution or not, not under Reagan in Lebanon, not under Clinton in Kosovo, not under Obama in Iraq [51:43] and Syria, not under Biden in Iraq and Syria. That's the standard. The history is clear and it's [51:50] very straightforward. And one disgruntled congressman wants to shred it over policy [51:57] disagreements. That's what it is. Policy disagreements, not high crimes, not misdemeanors, [52:04] not treason, not bribery, not the kinds of offenses the founders intended when they wrote the impeachment [52:10] clause. The proper remedy for a policy disagreement, it's legislation. It's debate. It's the next presidential [52:18] election. It's not handing the House and Senate floor to the Democrats so that they can run a show [52:25] trial against the president and the secretary of war while Republicans still control Congress [52:31] and should be delivering wins for the American people. You see, we've seen this show before. [52:37] They impeached President Trump over a perfect phone call. They impeached him again in his final week in [52:44] office. Both times they failed. Both times he came back stronger and the American people sent him back [52:51] to the White House. Now they're trying a third time, this time against a member of his cabinet. [52:58] They will fail again. And if standing with President Trump puts me in that company, [53:03] I'll take that company every day of the week. Let's be clear about what this resolution actually does. [53:10] It tells our enemies, Iran, the cartels, every adversary watching that the United States will [53:17] actually punish its own warriors and its own civilian leadership for successfully executing lawful [53:25] military operations. It tells them that a single rogue legislator loaded with personal animus for the [53:32] president can attempt to veto national security decisions made by the duly elected commander in chief. [53:38] It puts a target on the backs of American warriors by signaling that Congress will undermine their [53:45] missions in real time. This is not patriotism. This is sabotage. You know, five years ago, [53:54] America was humiliated in Kabul, Afghanistan, and every enemy on earth took notice. But somehow, [54:01] as the president pointed out yesterday, no impeachment vote for Lloyd Austin for that terrible withdrawal, [54:08] not even one vote, or no impeachment vote for when he went AWOL for over a week. No impeachment vote [54:16] for when he let a Chinese spy balloon fly over the country for over a week. See, President Trump ended [54:23] that kind of wokeness and weakness, peace through strength, not as a slogan, but as a way of war. [54:30] The Houthis found out first. They fired on American ships. Biden had let it happen. President Trump said, [54:37] no more. Operation Rough Rider hit them more than a thousand times. They cried, uncle, [54:42] and they stopped shooting at our ships to this day. Iran found out next. Operation Midnight Hammer, [54:51] B2s from the heartland, halfway around the world, straight into Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. Flawless. [54:57] The largest and most successful B2 strike in American history. Nuclear sites obliterated. Later, [55:05] in Operation Epic Fury, by every measure, we achieved a historic military victory. Under 40 [55:12] days of sustained combat. More than 13,000 targets struck. Their navy sunk. Their air force grounded. [55:19] Their defense industrial base, gone. More than 80% of their nuclear industrial base, gone. Their [55:27] military in ruin. The ironclad blockade, unbroken. We control the Strait of Hormuz. Crazy Islamists in [55:35] Tehran will never, ever have a nuclear weapon. A historic effort only made possible by a courageous [55:43] commander in chief. History will judge the Iran war quite differently than conventional wisdom right [55:50] now. We didn't start this war. Iran did 47 years ago. But President Trump is willing to do what no [55:57] other president would. He did the tough, right thing. Not for politics, but for the safety and the [56:05] security of the American people. That's leadership. He did not kick the can. He kicked their teeth in. [56:14] For generation, my generation fought other Middle Eastern wars that dragged on for years, [56:22] for decades. We lost thousands, thousands of Americans. I wear the bracelet of one of them [56:31] on my left wrist every single day. It reminds me. And may I remind you, for perspective, [56:40] we lost 60,000 Americans in Vietnam over 20 years. We lost 37,000 in Korea in just three years. That [56:54] many humans are lost on the front lines of Ukraine and Russia every month. This epic fury has never been [57:04] that. And it never will be. The media can just never admit the military success because they, [57:13] you hate the president more than you love our country or our troops. Then in our own hemisphere, [57:20] we started at home from day one. President Trump made homeland security, national security. We sent [57:26] American troops to lock down the southwest border and choked off the cartel pipeline of human smuggling, [57:32] of drugs and death. And then we took the fight to them. The cartels thought they could just poison [57:39] the American people and hide from justice. So we formed a counter cartel coalition, designated them [57:46] terrorists and hunted them at sea and now on land. More than 70 narco vessels sunk. 218 narco terrorists [57:56] dead where they should be. Maritime smuggling down at least 65% and dropping even further. Thousands of [58:05] American lives saved with every drug boat sunk and every shipment prevented. Indicted and wanted, [58:15] Nicolas Maduro thought he was untouchable. He was not kidnapped. He was brought to justice [58:23] by America's best. Victory in one night. Victory in 48 minutes to be precise. And today he sits in front [58:31] of an American judge in New York City. Flawless success. Panama kicked China's belt and road initiative to the [58:39] curb. And we, along with them, control the canal. The message is simple. This is our hemisphere. Act [58:47] accordingly. Our NATO allies, after decades of riding on the American taxpayer in Europe, committed to 5% [58:55] of GDP for their own defense. Our allies are finally stepping up. Out with being a burden, in with burden [59:03] sharing. Why? Because President Trump demanded it. America is the only country on earth and this military, [59:11] the only one that could successfully, could successfully execute and lead all of these operations and [59:17] efforts. Sheer success. Victories in both Venezuela and Iran. Energy security in our hemisphere in a way [59:26] none thought possible for a generation. And no nuclear bomb for Iran ever. But of course security doesn't [59:35] come free. Nobody was lost in the mission in Venezuela, but 18 Americans have given their lives in [59:41] Operation Epic Fury. We know their names. I've been to Dover. We honor them every day. But their [59:49] sacrifice only stiffens our resolve. As it happens, tomorrow is Veterans Day. This year the operators [59:58] of Absolute Resolve and the warriors of Epic Fury will mark it for the first time. They stand shoulder to [1:00:04] shoulder with the pilots of Midnight Hammer and the sailors of Rough Rider who went before them. They [1:00:09] answered the call. They executed. They won. And on the eve of Veterans Day, these resolutions tell every [1:00:19] one of them that their service was a crime. Their service was not a crime. These are heroes. And no [1:00:29] politician in Washington will tell them otherwise while I hold this office. President Trump gave this [1:00:36] department what it has not had in a generation. A commander in chief with the courage to lead and the [1:00:41] resolve to win. I stand behind every one of these operations. I was proud to execute them and I [1:00:49] would do it again tomorrow. And while this defeated politician, defeated ironically by a Navy SEAL I [1:00:57] might add, while this defeated politician drafts articles of impeachment, we've delivered the first [1:01:04] increase and a big one in hostile fire and imminent danger pay in more than 20 years. We've reinstated [1:01:10] over 600 service members who were forced out under the previous administration's COVID mandate. All [1:01:15] five of our services broke historic recruiting records. The Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Space [1:01:21] Force, the Marines for two years in a row. In fact, the Marines in FY27 met half of their goal on day [1:01:28] one. Americans are lining up to serve in President Trump's Department of War. And by the way, to those [1:01:34] Marines and all those Marines out there, Semper Fi and happy 251st birthday today. Two years of historic [1:01:43] recruitment after Biden couldn't recruit anyone. Same with retention, by the way, through the roof. [1:01:50] That means the troops that are in are staying in the best of the best based on merit, staying in night [1:01:56] and day from Biden to Trump. We cut unnecessary senior officer billets by 20% and raised combat performance [1:02:04] standards. Through the one big beautiful bill, we're investing in troop pay and housing and health [1:02:08] care and advanced weapons and equipment our war fighters actually need to win. That's the record. [1:02:15] That's what we're defending. Make no mistake about what is happening. This is not about me. Politicians [1:02:26] in Washington have accused the sailors and the pilots who struck narco terrorist boats of war crimes [1:02:33] for doing their job. Senators in cute videos have suggested the same. This resolution is the next [1:02:43] step. Put the secretary on trial today and the men and women who carried out those orders tomorrow. If [1:02:52] they want to come for the warriors, they're going to have to come through me. As for the articles themselves, [1:03:03] Iran, the cartels, Maduro, Yemen, everyone was a lawful operation ordered by the commander in [1:03:10] chief, then ordered by myself, notified to Congress and executed by American warriors who did their [1:03:17] jobs. We destroyed terror regimes capabilities. We sank the boats carrying poison into our communities. [1:03:24] We put a narco dictator in handcuffs. These are not high crimes. This is the job. And it's the job [1:03:33] well done. For the first time in American history, a cabinet secretary overseeing America's military [1:03:41] is being attacked, not for losing conflicts with our enemies, but for winning them condemned, [1:03:48] not for defeat, but for military victory. The disgruntled congressman even admitted this himself [1:03:56] yesterday. No failure here, just impeachment for success. As to the claim that the American military [1:04:06] targets civilians. Well, that is a lie. And that is a slander against every professional who flew, [1:04:12] sailed and fought on these missions. The only people who target civilians are the terrorists [1:04:18] that we hunt. And I will dignify this claim no further. None of these are high crimes or misdemeanors. [1:04:25] They're partisan policy disagreements from people who want to politicize our military. We will not [1:04:32] apologize for putting American lives first. We will not apologize for stopping the flow of drugs that kill [1:04:40] our citizens. We will not apologize for destroying the capabilities of a regime that chants death to [1:04:46] America. And if that regime makes one wrong move, as the president said, we remain locked and loaded with [1:04:55] the full weight and lethality of central command. We will not apologize for restoring a military that [1:05:01] recruits based on merit, restores real standards and fights to win. These resolutions are a farce. [1:05:11] They mock the constitution, they attack the chain of command, and they criminalize the warfighters who [1:05:16] execute lawful orders. This process hands our adversaries a propaganda victory and wastes the time [1:05:23] of Congress that should instead be focused on protecting the American people. We will continue to [1:05:30] do the job the American people elected President Trump to do. Protect this country, defeat our enemies, [1:05:36] and rebuild the military worthy of the warriors who wear the uniform. I pray each day, and I hope you do too, [1:05:44] for our troops. They are the best of our nation. Like the president, I will defend them with every fiber [1:05:52] of my being every single day. That includes having their back no matter what. So to the troops, as I've [1:06:01] said before, don't blink. Ignore the noise. Never hesitate. This is all politics. You do real things. [1:06:13] Stay the course. May almighty God protect them always. And may our actions today and every day [1:06:21] bring glory to him. We will stand, we will fight, and we will defend this republic against all enemies, [1:06:31] foreign and domestic. And amen. And with that, I'll take a few questions. Alexander, go ahead. [1:06:39] Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Excuse me. There's been some reporting of the IRGC [1:06:45] rearming in this interim period of ceasefire that has proliferated behind the blockade. [1:06:51] And the president has signaled that we may not resume kinetic operations. So my question is, [1:06:58] how will the IRGC remain degraded per the Epic Fury objectives if we are not resuming this kinetic [1:07:05] activity? And then how confident are you in maintaining nuclear degradation of Iran? [1:07:10] Well, we can maintain oversight and nuclear degradation, as the president has talked about. [1:07:15] We're able to maintain oversight and visibility of those nuclear sites. And if we saw the kind [1:07:19] of nefarious activity that required action, we would take it. The president has made it clear [1:07:22] about what we can see from space and what we can read on their name tapes. So we will watch that [1:07:28] on a lot of levels very, very closely. As far as the blockade is concerned, it's been ironclad. [1:07:32] Nothing has gotten through. When you can't fund your energy economy, you have to make very difficult [1:07:37] choices. And when you combine that with almost no defense industrial base and a limited nuclear [1:07:42] industrial base, and the damage that was done before that, their ability to reconstitute is much [1:07:47] less than ours. So we know they'll attempt to. This is the number one, the world's number one state [1:07:53] sponsor of terrorism, committed to terrorism. They built tunnels and caves and all. We know that they're [1:07:58] going to attempt to reconstitute. We know that we're in a much stronger position, nonetheless, [1:08:02] going forward. Absolutely. Yes. [1:08:04] Mr. Secretary, David Zier, Real America's Voice. How does it make you feel and what kind of message [1:08:10] does it send to our allies in the counter-cartel coalition when our own politicians don't support [1:08:17] taking out the narco-traffickers that kill their own constituents? And these countries joined us even [1:08:24] after, almost a year after the boat strikes commenced. And they are on board with us. [1:08:29] These countries that joined the America's counter-cartel coalition, the ACCC, [1:08:33] didn't just join us and they didn't join us reluctantly. They joined us proudly and boldly [1:08:38] and quickly. Because what they saw first was leadership from the president. [1:08:43] They saw a president re-establishing the Monroe Doctrine, the Trump corollary. We will [1:08:47] both stop narco-terrorists in our hemisphere and expel malign foreign influence. That's what these [1:08:52] countries have wanted. They just haven't had the leadership and they haven't had capabilities. [1:08:55] So when they saw us taking the lead with Southern Spear on the drug boats, when they saw the [1:08:59] operation with Nicolas Maduro, they saw what we were capable of on the blockade around Venezuela, [1:09:05] they said, we want in on that. That's American leadership. We don't want China and Russia and [1:09:09] Iran dominating our hemisphere. We'd rather have America be our defense partner and commercial [1:09:15] partner of choice. And so the counter-cartel coalition has grown very quickly because of that. [1:09:21] But you're onto an important point also. When our politicians want to play political games, [1:09:26] insinuating that our troops may be committing war crimes or they're not following the law when [1:09:31] everything has been lawful from day one, they start to sow doubt or attempt to sow doubt. And that's [1:09:37] the same kind of doubt they want to sow inside our partners of the ACCC, is, well, if you go after [1:09:42] these cartel members in your country, maybe someone will go after you later. And so we're working really [1:09:46] hard with these countries to prevent that kind of lawfare, to make sure they can get after these [1:09:52] drug cartels that have decimated their communities. And it's the one wonderful thing about the ACCC is [1:09:58] it's mutually beneficial. They get to save their countries and take their streets back. We get to [1:10:03] prevent drugs and gangs from coming to our country. Both sides win in that dynamic. I really appreciate that [1:10:09] question. Thank you, sir. It sounds like you feel confident in the president's support. Is that [1:10:14] accurate? And as another one, how do you feel about Stephen Miller becoming the new chief of staff? Are [1:10:19] you looking forward to working with him in that capacity? I let the president speak for himself, [1:10:22] and I'm grateful for his support. We've never had a better commander in chief, full stop. I get to watch [1:10:27] him every single day. He lives and breathes America first. And it's the honor of a lifetime to be his [1:10:33] secretary of war. Any day he'll have me, I'll be right here at this podium. As far as Stephen Miller's [1:10:38] concerned, he is an incredible American patriot and a great friend of this department. We wouldn't [1:10:44] have an ACCC in America's Counter Cartel Coalition without Stephen Miller. We wouldn't have a secure [1:10:49] southwest border for 18 months without what Stephen Miller has enabled. So he has – we've got no better [1:10:55] friend at the Department of War than Stephen Miller. He'll be a fantastic chief of staff. He understands the [1:11:00] president's agenda. He will stand, he will fight, and defend this republic, and we're proud to be [1:11:05] right there with him all the way. Absolutely. Yes. Chuck Schumer said yesterday that he wants to put you on [1:11:11] trial. Are you expecting this in the next Congress? And I mean, what's that going to look like when [1:11:16] Democrats take control? I don't know. I mean, it's what happens when you put people with ideological [1:11:22] agendas in charge of institutions. If they want to talk about America's – excuse me, President Trump's [1:11:28] foreign policy and national security record, let's do it. I'll see you there. Let's have a conversation [1:11:34] about the success that I outlined here, which for partisan reasons they want to take issue with. [1:11:38] But the ability for America to project power and ensure security to the American people has never [1:11:44] been better than it is right here today. And I can tell you, if you walk inside our formations – and [1:11:48] I would encourage many of you to do that – and you talk to the troops, they feel more empowered, [1:11:52] more enabled, more backed than they ever have. So if you want to talk about that, [1:11:57] talk about our recruiting success, talk about the military operations that we've undertaken [1:12:02] successfully, I'd welcome that conversation, no doubt. Mr. Secretary, Vice President J.D. Vance says [1:12:11] the Iran war was a major reason why the Republicans lost in the midterms. Do you agree? [1:12:16] I respect the Vice President greatly, and I'm certainly not going to exchange any finger [1:12:20] pointing, and thankfully politics is not really my thing. I do the Department of War and making [1:12:25] sure we're prepared and ready. So a lot of people are going to look at the conflict and assess it. [1:12:30] And the Vice President has been a critical member of the team in every aspect of this, [1:12:34] and we're grateful for all the input he's given me personally in our department. And I think going [1:12:39] forward, we're going to learn all those lessons and apply them. But I agree with what the President [1:12:44] said when he said, hey, if I had to do this all over again, would we do it again? Absolutely. [1:12:49] It was done for the right reasons to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. [1:12:55] As Marco Rubio said, I think quite well, it's not necessarily popular, but it may have been [1:13:01] necessary. And that's certainly how I feel it was a necessary undertaking. [1:13:04] A question on the impeachment effort and a question on the war. On the impeachment effort, [1:13:12] have you been making calls to allies on Capitol Hill to get support during this impeachment effort? [1:13:18] And also on the war, it's been reported that Stephen Miller pitched himself for the job of [1:13:23] chief of staff on the promise that he would end the Iran war. Have you spoken to Stephen Miller about [1:13:28] that? Well, I talked to Stephen Miller about a lot of things. But he's busy in his new role right [1:13:33] now, and I look forward to meeting with him soon, in particular, about the ways that we'll work [1:13:36] together. What was the first question again? The first question was on the impeachment effort, [1:13:40] have you been making calls to Capitol Hill? Well, thankfully, I think what people misunderstand [1:13:44] is the depth of partnership and work that we have done with House Republicans and Senate Republicans [1:13:49] and others that are willing to reach across the aisle. I mean, our Ledge Affairs team has been very [1:13:53] active, obviously, working with Speaker Johnson, who's done a fantastic job, and the whip, [1:13:58] Tom Emmer. We've been in touch with a lot of members. There's a ton of support. There's also an [1:14:03] understanding that this is one disgruntled guy who drew up some really flimsy articles that aren't [1:14:08] grounded actually in the Constitution or things that are high crimes and misdemeanors. And so [1:14:12] whether they love everything that's been done, they don't want to vote for something that isn't [1:14:16] real. So I'm grateful that Republicans have been taking a real look at this and the Speaker has led [1:14:21] on it, and I appreciate that. Mike Glenn. Yes, thank you, sir. You know, the impeachment notwithstanding, [1:14:30] the Democrats are going to run the House and the Senate next year. Are you making any kind of moves [1:14:35] or any kind to reach out to them to, you know, to try to make some sort of conciliatory piece, [1:14:41] you know, by your means for next year? I would say this, again, something else that gets, [1:14:45] appreciate the question, that gets misconstrued often is that we're somehow disengaged from Capitol [1:14:49] Hill, or we're not briefing Capitol Hill, or we're not talking to Republicans, or we're not talking to [1:14:53] Democrats. We've got civilian leaders and uniform leaders up on Capitol Hill all the time. That has [1:14:58] been the case, and that will be the case with Republicans and with Democrats. And right now, [1:15:02] we're flooding the zone because this lame duck period is critically important for funding of [1:15:07] our department. $350 billion at a minimum for reconciliation is what we believe is needed to [1:15:13] make a generational and historic investment in this department, something our warfighters need. [1:15:17] So you talk about this circus that one Congressman has tried to unleash. Like, [1:15:23] that's one small thing over here that we deal with. It's nothing compared to what we're actually [1:15:29] engaged and dealing with, which is ensuring operationally we're prepared all around the [1:15:34] globe. And then we get the funding for the troops that they need. And we're working with Speaker [1:15:37] Johnson, we're working with Leader Thune, we're working to all the Republicans to try to take [1:15:41] this opportunity. We know the Democrats won't do it, sadly, I wish they would, to take this opportunity [1:15:47] to try to fund the troops in a way that ensures we dominate at every domain for decades to come, [1:15:52] which is ultimately my job. My job's not to litigate all of this every day. It's to ensure we're funded and [1:15:58] funded properly, which is what the President expects every single day. Thank you very much. [1:16:03] Appreciate your time. Thank you. I'll get right to it. What one disgruntled and defeated Congressman [1:16:10] is attempting is not oversight and it's not accountability. It's a political spectacle, [1:16:17] a personal manifesto driven by ego and resentment. Time for one man's final days in Congress to try to do [1:16:25] damage to this president, this country, and most irresponsibly, the warriors who defend it. It's [1:16:33] a farce and it's a stunt and everybody knows it. In the 250 years of our American Republic, [1:16:43] no Secretary of War or Secretary of Defense has ever been impeached for carrying out lawful military [1:16:51] operations. And in our case, successful ones at that, not once. War powers resolution or not, [1:17:00] not under Reagan in Lebanon, not under Clinton in Kosovo, not under Obama in Iraq and Syria, [1:17:06] not under Biden in Iraq and Syria. That's the standard. The history is clear and it's very [1:17:14] straightforward. And one disgruntled Congressman wants to shred it over policy disagreements. That's [1:17:22] what it is. Policy disagreements. Not high crimes, not misdemeanors, not treason, not bribery, not the [1:17:30] kinds of offenses the founders intended when they wrote the impeachment clause. The proper remedy for [1:17:36] a policy disagreement, it's legislation. It's debate. It's the next presidential election. It's not handing [1:17:43] the House and Senate floor to the Democrats so that they can run a show trial against the president [1:17:50] and the Secretary of War while Republicans still control Congress and should be delivering wins for [1:17:56] the American people. You see, we've seen this show before. They impeached President Trump over a perfect [1:18:04] phone call. They impeached him again in his final week in office. Both times they failed. Both times he [1:18:10] came back stronger and the American people sent him back to the White House. Now they're trying a third [1:18:18] time. This time against a member of his cabinet. They will fail again. And if standing with President [1:18:25] Trump puts me in that company, I'll take that company every day of the week. Let's be clear about [1:18:32] what this resolution actually does. It tells our enemies, Iran, the cartels, every adversary watching [1:18:39] that the United States will actually punish its own warriors and its own civilian leadership for [1:18:46] successfully executing lawful military operations. It tells them that a single rogue legislator loaded [1:18:53] with personal animus for the president can attempt to veto national security decisions made by the [1:19:00] duly elected commander in chief. It puts a target on the backs of American warriors by signaling that [1:19:07] Congress will undermine their missions in real time. This is not patriotism. This is sabotage. [1:19:15] You know, five years ago, America was humiliated in Kabul, Afghanistan, and every enemy on earth took [1:19:23] notice. But somehow, as the president pointed out yesterday, no impeachment vote for Lloyd Austin for [1:19:30] that terrible withdrawal. Not even one vote. Or no impeachment vote for when he went AWOL for over a [1:19:37] week. No impeachment vote for when he let a Chinese spy balloon fly over the country for over a week. [1:19:44] You see, President Trump ended that kind of wokeness and weakness, peace through strength, [1:19:50] not as a slogan, but as a way of war. The Houthis found out first. They fired on American ships. [1:19:58] Biden had let it happen. President Trump said no more. Operation Rough Rider hit them more than a [1:20:03] thousand times. They cried, uncle, and they stopped shooting at our ships to this day. Iran found out next. [1:20:12] Operation Midnight Hammer, B-2s from the heartland, halfway around the world, straight into Fordow, [1:20:18] Natanz, and Esfahan. Flawless. The largest and most successful B-2 strike in American history. [1:20:25] Nuclear sites obliterated. Later in Operation Epic Fury, by every measure, we achieved a historic [1:20:33] military victory. Under 40 days of sustained combat, more than 13,000 targets struck, their navy sunk, [1:20:41] their air force grounded, their defense industrial base gone, more than 80% of their nuclear industrial [1:20:48] base gone, their military in ruin, the ironclad blockade unbroken. We control the Strait of Hormuz. [1:20:57] Crazy Islamists in Tehran will never ever have a nuclear weapon. A historic effort only made possible [1:21:05] by a courageous commander-in-chief. History will judge the Iran war quite differently [1:21:12] than conventional wisdom right now. We didn't start this war. Iran did 47 years ago. But President [1:21:19] Trump is willing to do what no other president would. He did the tough right thing. Not for politics, [1:21:27] but for the safety and the security of the American people. That's leadership. He did not kick the can. [1:21:35] He kicked their teeth in. My generation fought other Middle Eastern wars that dragged on for years, [1:21:45] for decades. We lost thousands, thousands of Americans. I wear the bracelet of one of them [1:21:54] on my left wrist every single day. It reminds me. And may I remind you for perspective, we lost 60,000 [1:22:06] Americans in Vietnam over 20 years. We lost 37,000 in Korea in just three years. That many humans are [1:22:18] lost on the front lines of Ukraine and Russia every month. This epic fury has never been that, [1:22:29] and it never will be. The media can just never admit the military success because they, you, [1:22:37] hate the president more than you love our country or our troops. Then in our own hemisphere, we started [1:22:44] at home. From day one, President Trump made homeland security national security. We sent American troops [1:22:50] to lock down the southwest border and choked off the cartel pipeline of human smuggling, of drugs, [1:22:56] and death. And then we took the fight to them. The cartels thought they could just poison the American [1:23:03] people and hide from justice. So we formed a counter cartel coalition, designated them terrorists, [1:23:10] and hunted them at sea, and now on land. More than 70 narco vessels sunk. 218 narco terrorists dead, [1:23:20] where they should be. Maritimes smuggling down at least 65% and dropping even further. Thousands of [1:23:28] American lives saved with every drug boat sunk and every shipment prevented. Indicted and wanted, [1:23:38] Nicolas Maduro thought he was untouchable. He was not kidnapped. He was brought to justice [1:23:46] by America's best. Victory in one night. Victory in 48 minutes, to be precise. And today he sits in front [1:23:54] of an American judge in New York City. Flawless success. Panama kicked China's Belt and Road initiative to the [1:24:02] curb. And we, along with them, control the canal. The message is simple. This is our hemisphere. [1:24:09] Act accordingly. Our NATO allies, after decades of riding on the American taxpayer in Europe, [1:24:16] committed to 5% of GDP for their own defense. Our allies are finally stepping up. Out with being a [1:24:24] burden, in with burden sharing. Why? Because President Trump demanded it. America is the only country on [1:24:33] earth and this military, the only one that could successfully, could successfully execute and lead [1:24:38] all of these operations and efforts. Sheer success. Victories in both Venezuela and Iran. Energy security [1:24:47] in our hemisphere in a way none thought possible for a generation. And no nuclear bomb for Iran ever. [1:24:55] But of course security doesn't come free. Nobody was lost in the mission in Venezuela, but 18 Americans have [1:25:03] given their lives in Operation Epic Fury. We know their names. I've been to Dover. We honor them every [1:25:10] day. But their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve. As it happens, tomorrow is Veterans Day. This year, [1:25:20] the operators of Absolute Resolve and the warriors of Epic Fury were marked for the first time. They stand [1:25:27] shoulder to shoulder with the pilots of Midnight Hammer and the sailors of Rough Rider who went before [1:25:32] them. They answered the call. They executed. They won. And on the eve of Veterans Day, these resolutions [1:25:42] tell every one of them that their service was a crime. Their service was not a crime. These are heroes. [1:25:51] And no politician in Washington will tell them otherwise while I hold this office. President Trump [1:25:59] gave this department what it has not had in a generation. A commander in chief with the courage to [1:26:04] lead and the resolve to win. I stand behind every one of these operations. I was proud to execute them [1:26:12] and I would do it again tomorrow. And while this defeated politician, defeated ironically by a Navy [1:26:20] seal, I might add, while this defeated politician drafts articles of impeachment, we've delivered the [1:26:27] first increase and a big one in hostile fire and imminent danger pay in more than 20 years. We've reinstated [1:26:33] over 600 service members who were forced out under the previous administration's COVID mandate. All five [1:26:39] of our services broke historic recruiting records. The Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Space Force, [1:26:45] the Marines for two years in a row. In fact, the Marines in FY27 met half of their goal on day one. [1:26:52] Americans are lining up to serve in President Trump's Department of War. And by the way, to those [1:26:57] Marines and all those Marines out there, Semper Fi and happy 251st birthday today. Two years of historic [1:27:06] recruitment after Biden couldn't recruit anyone. Same with retention, by the way, through the roof. [1:27:14] That means the troops that are in are staying in the best of the best based on merit, staying in night [1:27:19] and day from Biden to Trump. We cut unnecessary senior officer billets by 20% and raised combat performance [1:27:27] standards. Through the one big beautiful bill, we're investing in troop pay and housing and healthcare [1:27:32] and advanced weapons and equipment our warfighters actually need to win. That's the record. That's what [1:27:40] we're defending. Make no mistake about what is happening. This is not about me. Politicians in [1:27:49] Washington have accused the sailors and the pilots who struck narco terrorist boats of war crimes [1:27:56] for doing their job. Senators in cute videos have suggested the same. This resolution is the next [1:28:06] step. Put the secretary on trial today and the men and women who carried out those orders tomorrow. If [1:28:15] they want to come for the warriors, they're going to have to come through me. As for the articles themselves, [1:28:25] Iran, the cartels, Maduro, Yemen, everyone was a lawful operation ordered by the commander in [1:28:33] chief, then ordered by myself, notified to Congress and executed by American warriors who did their [1:28:40] jobs. We destroyed terror regimes capabilities. We sank the boats carrying poison into our communities. [1:28:47] We put a narco dictator in handcuffs. These are not high crimes. This is the job. And it's the job [1:28:56] well done. For the first time in American history, a cabinet secretary overseeing America's military [1:29:04] is being attacked, not for losing conflicts with our enemies, but for winning them condemned, [1:29:11] not for defeat, but for military victory. The disgruntled congressman even admitted this himself [1:29:19] yesterday. No failure here, just impeachment for success as to the claim that the American military [1:29:29] targets civilians. Well, that is a lie. And that is a slander against every professional who flew, [1:29:35] sailed and fought on these missions. The only people who target civilians are the terrorists [1:29:41] that we hunt. And I will dignify this claim no further. None of these are high crimes or misdemeanors. [1:29:48] They're partisan policy disagreements from people who want to politicize our military. We will not [1:29:56] apologize for putting American lives first. We will not apologize for stopping the flow of drugs that kill [1:30:03] our citizens. We will not apologize for stopping the flow of drugs that kill our citizens. We will