"There is a lot we still don’t know and we need an accurate, factual damage assessment."
"Israel’s alarming decision to launch airstrikes on Iran is a reckless escalation that risks igniting regional violence."
"The Pentagon has been paralyzed by infighting and stripped of expert staff at a time when we need stability and professionalism."
"I’m not a great mathematician, but I think you were talking about $1 trillion? I believe $1.5 billion times 10 is $15 billion. That’s a little bit off from $1 trillion."
"I have always advocated for efficiency at the Department of Defense, but tough personnel decisions should be based on facts and analysis, not arbitrary percentages."
"Eliminating the positions of many of our most skilled and experienced officers without sound justification would not create ‘efficiency’ in the military — it could cripple it."
"Secretary Hegseth has shown an eagerness to dismiss military leaders without cause, and I will be skeptical of the rationale for these plans until he explains them before the Armed Services Committee."
"The question has to be posed to Secretary Hegseth whether he declassified the information and at what point he did declassify? Do you agree?"
"one of the most egregious failures of operational security and common sense"
"Military operations need to be handled with utmost discretion, using approved, secure lines of communication, because American lives are on the line."
"It was not planned at all. It was the exact opposite of how most people expected the exchange to go."