President Donald Trump spoke openly Monday about the cabinet official who first pushed him toward U.S. military action against Iran, comments that come as the Pentagon faces renewed scrutiny over its handling of press access during the conflict.
Speaking during a Memphis Safe Task Force roundtable in Tennessee, Trump identified Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as the first senior official to advocate for the strikes.
“I called Pete, I called General Caine, I called a lot of our great people,” Trump said, describing internal discussions ahead of the military action.
“We’ve got a problem in the Middle East. We have a country that for 47 years has been a purveyor of terror,” he said. “They’re very close to having a nuclear weapon.”
Trump said the administration was considering the Dow Jones Industrial Average — hovering around 50,000 at the end of February — as it weighed abandoning negotiations with Iran and going to war.
“We can keep going and get that 50,000 up to 55 and 60, there’s no end,” he said. “Or we could make a stop and make a little journey into the Middle East, and eliminate a big problem.”
He then pointed to Hegseth as an early supporter of that approach.
“Pete, I think you were the first one to speak up,” Trump said. “And you said, ‘Let’s do it,’ because you can’t let them have a nuclear weapon.”
The U.S. military campaign against Iran began on Feb. 28 and has now entered its fourth week.
Hegseth has been one of the most visible public advocates for the strikes, which began as a joint operation with Israel, fulfilling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decades-long quest to take America to war against Iran.
Hegseth has led Pentagon briefings outlining objectives that include targeting Iran’s ballistic missile program, drone production capabilities and naval assets.
He has also criticized media coverage of the war, pushing back on reporting that highlights internal disagreement or questions about the campaign’s trajectory.
Trump acknowledged that not all senior officials were aligned at the outset.
He said Vice President JD Vance was less enthusiastic about military action, though Vance has not publicly opposed the administration’s approach.
Other senior figures, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles — who is a former Netanyahu campaign manager — were also reported to have been less effusive about “Operation Epic Fury” before the strikes began.
At the same time, Trump’s remarks drew attention for how they framed Hegseth’s role in the decision-making process.
By describing Hegseth as the first to advocate for action, Trump appeared to place early momentum for the strikes on the defense secretary.
That framing comes as the administration sends mixed signals about the direction of the conflict.
Trump said Monday that the U.S. would pause planned strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure, including power facilities, for five days.
He said the pause was tied to what he described as “productive” talks aimed at ending the conflict.
Iranian officials have denied that any direct negotiations are taking place. The Islamic Republic has twice seen negotiations with the United States interrupted by bombing campaigns after last June’s 12-day war was followed by the current campaign.
When asked about that denial, Trump dismissed it.
“They’re going to have to get themselves better communications people,” he said.
“We have had very, very strong talks. We’ll see where they lead. We have major points of agreement.”
He suggested Iran’s internal communication challenges may be affecting its public messaging.
“Perhaps that’s not been conveyed. As you know, their communications have been blown to pieces. They’re unable to talk to each other,” Trump said.
“Mr. Witkoff and Mr. Kushner had them. They went perfectly,” referring to his son-in-law Jared Kushner and longtime friend Steve Witkoff, two real estate developers the president has entrusted as roving diplomatic special envoys in his second term.
Separately, Hegseth is facing legal and political pressure over the Pentagon’s handling of press access.
A federal judge ruled Friday that the Defense Department violated the First and Fifth Amendments by restricting journalists who declined to follow new media policies.
The restrictions required some outlets to rely on Pentagon-approved information or risk losing access.
Several organizations, including The New York Times, gave up their Pentagon credentials in protest rather than comply with the policy.
In a 40-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman said the restrictions limited independent reporting at a time when public access to information about military operations is especially important.
“The Court recognizes that national security must be protected, the security of our troops must be protected, and war plans must be protected,” wrote Friedman.
“But especially in light of the country’s recent incursion into Venezuela and its ongoing war with Iran, it is more important than ever that the public have access to information from a variety of perspectives about what its government is doing,” he added.
The Pentagon said it disagrees with the ruling and is pursuing an appeal.
The dispute has intensified scrutiny of how the administration manages press access during wartime operations.
The U.S. is currently engaged in military activity across the Middle East, alongside operations in other regions, including Africa and Latin America.
