Hegseth confirms DoD is prepared to follow Trump's orders on Iran as president weighs options

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday confirmed to a Senate panel that the United States military is prepared to carry out President Donald Trump's decisions when it comes to Iran, but that right now he is advising the president on the various options. 

Trump told reporters at the White House that he is still deciding how to handle the Israel-Iran conflict, but maintained that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. 

Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee that Iran should have made a deal with the United States last week.

"My job, our job, Chairman ... at all times is to make sure ... the president has options and is informed of what those options might be and what the ramifications of what those options might be," Hegseth said. "President Trump's word means something. The world understands that. And at the Defense Department, our job is to stand ready and prepared with options. And that's precisely what we're doing."

Trump issued an ultimatum to Iran on Tuesday, stating that he would not kill Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei "for now," but warned that he knew where the leader was located. But Trump said Wednesday that no final decision had been made.

“I have ideas as to what to do, but I haven’t made a final — I like to make the final decision one second before it’s due, you know, because things change," Trump said. "I mean, especially with war, things change with war. It can go from one extreme to the other."

The president also encouraged Israel to "keep going" in its fight with Iran and that he believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is being treated "very unfairly" by the press. 

Iran has rejected calls so far to surrender to the United States and Israel, with the Iranian embassy claiming "no Iranian official has ever asked to grovel at the gates of the White House." 

The country has also warned that any attack from the U.S. would result in an "all-out war." 

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.