‘I don’t think anybody’s been on the ground’: Republicans master vanishing act when confronted with the truth about Trump’s Iran stories

Several Senate Republicans expressed uncertainty about President Donald Trump’s claims that Iran’s nuclear program has been “obliterated” following a classified briefing on Thursday afternoon. The briefing, which included top military and intelligence officials, provided details about recent U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

According to Politico, while Trump and his Cabinet officials have strongly maintained that the strikes completely destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities, senators who attended the briefing offered more careful responses, even as they praised the operation’s success.

“I don’t think anybody’s been on the ground to assess the extent of the damage,” Senator John Cornyn of Texas told reporters after the briefing. This statement highlighted the gap between Trump’s confident claims and the more measured response from lawmakers.

Latest updates reveal divided opinions on strike effectiveness

The classified session included briefings from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe. They discussed Operation Midnight Hammer, which targeted three Iranian nuclear sites using seven B-2 stealth aircraft and a guided missile submarine.

Some Republicans, like Senator Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, tried to bridge the divide between Trump’s statements and the briefing’s contents. He suggested that terms like “setback,” “obliterated,” “destroyed,” and “greatly diminished” were all accurate descriptions, depending on their context.

Democratic leaders expressed more direct skepticism. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he “did not receive an adequate answer” about claims regarding Iran’s nuclear capabilities being obliterated. The response came amid leaked preliminary intelligence assessments that seemed to contradict the administration’s victory claims.

Senator Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally, supported the president’s assessment but added important context. While agreeing that the targeted sites were “obliterated,” he warned that Iran could potentially rebuild its program and stressed that the broader challenge of Iran’s nuclear ambitions remains unresolved.

The operation marked the first combat use of the 30,000-pound GBU-57 bunker-busting bomb, with 14 bombs dropped on the Fordo facility and other sites. Despite the significant scale of the attack, questions remain about its long-term impact on Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

The briefing received some positive feedback from Democrats, with Senator Chris Coons calling it “constructive” and “substantive.” However, Democratic leaders continue to push for a vote on legislation that would require congressional approval for further military action against Iran.