Hegseth Faces Sharp Questions on $25B Iran Costs as War Powers Deadline Nears

WASHINGTON – Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth heads into the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday already bloodied from a combative House hearing the day before, where he repeatedly dodged basic questions about the administration’s war in Iran as the conflict hits its 59th day and the $25 billion price tag to American taxpayers continues climbing.

The hearing, nominally about the Pentagon’s eye-watering $1.5 trillion budget request for next year, has instead laid bare the growing discomfort even among some Republicans over a military campaign launched without explicit congressional approval. Under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, President Trump was required to notify Congress within 48 hours of the late February strikes. The law prohibits sustained operations beyond 60 days without legislative buy-in. That deadline arrives Friday, raising fresh questions about whether the administration believes the Constitution’s war powers still apply or whether endless conflict in the Middle East has simply become standard operating procedure in Washington.

Hegseth’s performance Wednesday before the House Armed Services Committee did little to reassure skeptics. When pressed by Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the panel, about the Pentagon’s actual strategy now that the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked, oil prices have spiked, and the Iranian nuclear program has not been eliminated, Hegseth responded with familiar rhetoric about “staring down enemies” and past administrations cutting “bad deals.” Smith kept interrupting with the same straightforward question: What is the plan? Hegseth never gave a clear answer.

Instead the secretary lashed out at his critics, declaring that “the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless, feckless and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans.” The remark landed poorly with lawmakers who noted six American service members have already been killed. Rep. Pat Ryan, a West Point graduate from New York, said Hegseth could not even answer basic questions about those deaths. Other moments revealed a man visibly rattled by follow-ups. When asked about the bombing of a school that killed children and about the rapid depletion of U.S. munitions stockpiles, Hegseth grew defensive, at times scornful. One lawmaker described it as a dramatic unraveling.

Even some Republicans broke ranks. Rep. Jen Kiggans of Virginia, whose district includes major Navy installations, pressed Hegseth on the abrupt dismissal of Navy Secretary John Phelan. The broader budget discussion also highlighted worries that America is burning through precision weapons faster than it can replace them while China watches and waits.

The situation on the ground remains grim. Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, released a statement Thursday vowing to protect the country’s nuclear and missile programs as “national assets.” He declared that foreigners have “no place in the Persian Gulf except at the bottom of its waters.” The blockade of the strait has sent global energy markets into turmoil, hammering American consumers already squeezed by inflation. Diplomacy appears stalled. The war that began with targeted strikes to supposedly neutralize a nuclear threat has now become a wider conflict with no obvious off-ramp.

Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, signaled he intends to press Hegseth on precisely these points. King has long warned about the dangers of presidents treating the War Powers Resolution as optional. His questions are expected to focus on costs, timelines, munitions shortages, and whether the administration has any realistic plan to extricate the United States without handing a victory to Tehran or requiring a massive new commitment of American forces.

Senate Republicans, led by Chairman Roger Wicker of Mississippi, will likely emphasize the need to use the massive budget request to rebuild domestic manufacturing and restock the arsenal. They argue the conflict proves the urgency of reindustrializing America’s defense base. Yet even some in the GOP are showing private unease about the length of the operation and the precedent of bypassing Congress yet again.

This episode exposes a deeper problem in Washington: the country keeps getting pulled into Middle East wars that devour treasure, erode readiness, and deliver uncertain strategic gains. For all the tough talk about confronting adversaries, the inability of senior officials to answer simple questions about objectives and exit strategies should concern every American who remembers the last two decades of conflict. Whether the Senate hearing produces clearer answers or simply more finger-pointing remains to be seen. What is already obvious is that the price, both financial and constitutional, is rising fast.