Overview

• Hegseth told senators the Pentagon is preparing options for President Trump on potential strikes against Iran but refused to specify if U.S. forces would directly assist Israeli operations
• Lawmakers scrutinized Hegseth’s deployment of nearly 5,000 National Guard troops and Marines to Los Angeles protests, probing whether he had authorized arrests or use of lethal force against civilians
• He defended the administration’s trillion-dollar defense budget request and social policy reforms such as the transgender troop ban and Confederate-era base renamings
• Hegseth asserted that district courts should not set national security policy and said he would reconsider compliance only if directed by the Supreme Court
• The U.S. has shifted significant numbers of refueling tankers and fighter aircraft to the Middle East to ensure maximum force protection as Iran and Israel intensify airstrikes