Jack Reed accuses Pete Hegseth of 'gross negligence' over Iran war

Senator Jack Reed grilled U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during a Congressional hearing on Tuesday, accusing him of using the Joe Biden administration as an excuse for "gross negligence." Hegseth was in Congress testifying about the war in Iran, hoping for its approval of billions in supplemental funding for the same. Sen. Reed stated that attacking Iranian vessels had not accomplished the goal of deterring Tehran from blocking the Strait of Hormuz, to which Hegseth responded that several American vessels had surrendered to Iranian ones during the Biden administration.

"We are talking about a war you started," Reed said, pointing his finger at the Defense Secretary. "Not a situation in which oil was flowing freely, there was no conflict, and we were not losing personnel as a result of Iranian action. So, your fallback to the Biden administration is just a very, very obvious excuse for what I think is probably, as you describe so often, gross negligence," he added. The Rhode Island Senator also accused Hegseth of not fully informing President Donald Trump about how the war could affect the Hormuz Strait.

"You did not fully inform the President that we would be in a situation where the Strait of Hormuz could be effectively closed, oil prices could surge, and effectively, the Iranians could maintain their ability to strike back as they are right now. They just killed some of our servicemen last weekend," Reed said. Hegseth responded by saying that he and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General John "Dan" Caine, had made the contingencies clear to President Trump, and praised his courage to go ahead with it anyway.

Reed, however, was not convinced. "Excuse me, so he should be praised for starting a war without authority and creating a situation in which the world economy is suffering tremendously?" he asked. Several other Senators grilled Hegseth about his funding request, which led to tense moments. And it is not just Democratic Senators who sternly questioned the Secretary of Defense over the situation in Iran. 

Republican Senator John Kennedy first asked Gen. Caine about whether Iran would start charging a toll on the Strait of Hormuz if U.S. forces left. When he was told that it was a hypothetical scenario that he did not have the answers to, he turned to Hegseth. "We're down to it. We need smart answers and some straight talk. What will happen, Pete?" he asked. The Secretary of Defense agreed that it was likely for Iran to place a toll or a fee on the strait if U.S. forces withdrew at this point.

Sen. Kennedy then asked if Tehran would consider restarting its efforts to build a nuclear weapon once U.S. forces retreated, and did not seem happy with the Defense Secretary's response. "Gosh, we need straight answers. We need straight answers. Do we have the ability to destroy whatever is under Pickaxe Mountain?" he asked. Hegseth assured him that if any military could achieve that feat, it was the U.S. military.