Sen. Thom Tillis publicly turned up the heat on Secretary of War Pete Hegseth Sunday, accusing him of overselling America’s success against Iran and making reckless military decisions that forced President Donald Trump to reverse course.
According to the New York Post, during an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union,” the North Carolina Republican questioned how administration officials went from declaring Iran’s military capabilities destroyed to now discussing a possible agreement that could leave nuclear material in the country.
“When you tell the president that you have obliterated Iran and you’re in a position to pretty much dictate terms, and now you see what we have,” Tillis said, “there’s an issue.”
The senator’s criticism comes as the conflict with Iran continues, creating economic and military pressure across the region.
Despite early claims from Hegseth and Pentagon officials that U.S. strikes severely damaged Iran’s missile stockpiles and defenses, Tehran has continued disrupting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil routes.
Iran has reportedly used mines and drone attacks to intimidate ships traveling through the area, while the United States responded with a blockade targeting Iranian ports.
Tillis also targeted Hegseth over a recent decision involving U.S. troops in Europe.
Earlier this month, the Pentagon paused a planned deployment of 4,000 American troops to Poland as part of a broader reduction of forces in Europe. Trump later reversed the move and approved sending 5,000 troops instead.
“When you see Hegseth pull back on operations in Poland when Ukraine — when Russia is raping, killing, murdering, torturing countless people in Ukraine — I think, with all these mistakes in total, it’s beginning to make Kristi Noem look like a five-star recruit,” Tillis said.
The remark referenced former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who faced intense scrutiny before leaving the administration earlier this year.
Tillis also expressed concern about reports that the United States may now tolerate Iran retaining nuclear material after earlier military claims suggested Tehran’s defenses had been devastated.
“We were told about 11 weeks ago by Hegseth and the Department of Defense that they had obliterated Iran’s defenses, and it was just a matter of time before we had the nuclear material,” Tillis said.
“Now we are talking about a posture where we may accept the nuclear material remaining in Iran? How does that make sense at all?”
The senator further described reports of a potential framework agreement with Iran as “questionable.”
Tillis, who announced he will not seek reelection, has increasingly separated himself from parts of the Trump administration despite previously voting to confirm both Hegseth and Noem.