The White House’s top spokesperson went into full damage-control mode on Tuesday—snapping at reporters as questions mounted over a glaring contradiction in the Trump administration’s messaging on Iran.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, 28, faced a pointed question outside the White House over dueling narratives about the true impact of the administration’s much-hyped military operation targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities last June.
And instead of clearing things up, she dug in—blasting what she called “sensationalist reporting,” while doubling down on President Donald Trump’s version of events.
The tension stems from Trump’s repeated victory laps over “Operation Midnight Hammer,” a covert U.S. strike on three Iranian nuclear sites that he has claimed “obliterated” the country’s nuclear program. The president has touted the operation as a decisive blow, framing it as both a military and strategic triumph.
But that narrative hit a snag over the weekend.
In a Fox News interview on Saturday, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, 68, appeared to undercut the president’s claims, suggesting Iran was still “probably a week away” from obtaining industrial-grade bomb-making material—raising eyebrows about whether the operation was as crippling as advertised.
Pressed on the apparent contradiction, Leavitt sidestepped Witkoff’s remarks entirely.
Instead, she stuck firmly to Trump’s script, insisting the mission was “overwhelmingly successful” and reiterating that it had, in fact, obliterated Iran’s nuclear facilities. She added that the assessment had been verified not only by the president but also by the International Atomic Energy Commission.
Rather than directly reconcile the conflicting accounts, Leavitt turned her fire on the press—accusing reporters of fueling confusion through what she called inaccurate coverage.
“I’ve seen a lot of sensationalist reporting over the past day that is just completely untrue,” she said, visibly frustrated.
She went on to slam anonymous sourcing, warning that anyone “pretending to know what President Trump is thinking or a decision he will make… has no idea what they’re talking about!”
Leavitt also emphasized that Trump remains the ultimate authority on any potential escalation with Iran, asserting that he alone will decide the next move as tensions simmer.
The president himself struck a similar tone just a day earlier.
In a fiery Truth Social post on Monday, Trump lashed out at what he labeled the “Fake News Media,” rejecting reports that Gen. Daniel Caine—the military leader behind Operation Midnight Hammer—had expressed reservations about the U.S going to war with Iran.
Trump dismissed those claims as “100 percent incorrect,” insisting they were being spread “purposefully” by the media. He further stressed that any military decision would ultimately be his call, adding that if ordered, Caine would fall in line and be the one “leading the pack” in the operation.
Even as the administration continues to trumpet the operation’s success, Leavitt left room for Witkoff’s version of events. Without directly referencing the special envoy’s statements, Leavitt conceded that while the strike dealt a major blow, it does not necessarily mean Iran is permanently out of the nuclear game.
“That does not mean Iran may never try again to establish a nuclear program,” she said, signaling that the threat remains alive despite the administration’s victory claims.
Meanwhile, the broader geopolitical picture is only adding to the uncertainty about a potential war with Iran.
The U.S. has significantly increased its military presence in the region, making it the largest buildup of forces near Iran since the Iraq War in 2003—fueling speculation that the situation could spiral into a wider conflict.
At the same time, the administration is publicly keeping the door open to diplomacy.
Leavitt stressed that Trump’s “first option is always diplomacy,” but paired that with a firm warning: the president is prepared to deploy “the lethal force of the United States military if necessary.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.
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