The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff admitted that it’s not his job to assess the damage inflicted by President Donald Trump’s bombing of nuclear facilities in Iran.
Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine was wheeled out Thursday alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for a Pentagon press briefing, which Trump promised would be an “irrefutable” rebuttal to a leaked U.S. intelligence report that undermined his claims about the damage inflicted at the three targets. Trump has continuously insisted the facilities were “obliterated,” while the leaked preliminary report said the bombings likely only delayed Iran’s nuclear ambitions by a matter of months.
After Hegseth used the press conference to lash out at the media that covered the leaked report from the Defense Intelligence Agency—which is part of the Defense Department, which Hegseth leads—Caine provided information about the crew and weapons involved in the Iran operation, dubbed “Midnight Hammer.”
Caine did not, however, mention the extent of the damage caused or give an assessment of how much of an impediment the operation has been to Iran’s nuclear program. A reporter also pressed Caine on what had changed between Sunday—when he said the battle damage assessment (BDA) was pending and it would be “way too early to comment” on what remained of the targets—and Thursday, when Hegseth continued to echo Trump’s claim that the sites were “obliterated.”
Asked if he would also use the term to describe the damage, Caine answered: “Sir, like I said, we don’t do BDA, I’ll refer that to the intelligence community, and uh…”
The reporter then interrupted to point out that Caine is in contact with the intelligence community, again asking what had changed over the last few days.
“I think I explained what changed,” Hegseth interjected, before Caine could answer. “There was a great deal of irresponsible reporting based on leaks, preliminary information in low confidence.” He went on to repeat his allegation that the leaker must have had a “political agenda.” Hegseth added that Caine is “not involved in politics.”
“That’s my lane, to understand and translate and talk about those types of things,” Hegseth said. “So I can use the word ‘obliterated,’ he could use ‘defeat,’ ‘destroyed,’ ‘assess,’ all of those things.” Pointing at Caine, Hegseth said anyone with “two eyes, some ears, and a brain” would realize the operation would have had a “devastating” effect.
Caine again told the reporter the intelligence community “should be able to help” answer his question about what had changed. “They look at a variety of things,” Caine said. “I don’t do that. They do. All different sources of intel, which I’d refer you to them to get clarity.”
Hegseth then referenced statements released by CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Trump’s embattled Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on Wednesday. The statements, which came as the Trump administration savaged the leaked preliminary assessment from its own intelligence community, said new intelligence indicated the Iranian facilities had been “destroyed.”
Asked at the press conference if he’d been under political pressure to give a “rosy intelligence assessment,” Caine answered: “No, I have not.”
Trump, it seems, was thrilled with how the press conference went. “One of the greatest, most professional, and most ‘confirming’ News Conferences I have ever seen!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. “The Fake News should fire everyone involved in this Witch Hunt, and apologize to our great warriors, and everyone else!”
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