‘It takes a lot of money to kill bad guys’: Hegseth on $200 billion ask for Operation Epic Fury

by Mike Glenn · The Washington Times

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Thursday confirmed that the Department of Defense is asking Congress for upwards of $200 billion to support ongoing military operations in Iran.

The funding request is intended to cover the escalating costs of Operation Epic Fury — the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against the Islamic Republic — and to replenish stockpiles of high-precision munitions that are being depleted at a rapid rate. Mr. Hegseth said the U.S. has struck more than 7,000 targets throughout Iran and that Thursday’s mission would be the largest since hostilities began almost three weeks ago.

“As far as $200 billion, I think that number could move. Obviously, it takes a lot of money to kill bad guys,” he told reporters at the Pentagon. “We’re going back to Congress and our folks there to ensure that we’re properly funded for what’s being done [and] for what we may have to do in the future.”

The staggering figure exceeds the assistance provided to Kyiv since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. The U.S. has allocated about $188 billion in aid for the war in Ukraine.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said the military dropped 5,000-pound penetrator weapons into underground facilities being used to store coastal defense cruise missiles and other support equipment, which could be used to threaten merchant ship traffic through the vital Strait of Hormuz.

“These weapons are bespokely designed to get through concrete and/or rocks, and function after penetrating those barriers,” Gen. Caine said. “We continue to hunt and kill mine storage facilities and naval ammunition depots.”

U.S. forces have destroyed more than 120 Iranian military vessels, including 44 used to lay sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz. Gen. Caine confirmed that U.S. Central Command is using the 53-year-old A-10 Thunderbolt, commonly referred to as the Warthog, to knock out Iranian fast attack watercraft along the choke point.

Although the Air Force has been trying to “retire” the A-10 for decades, the jet’s devastating 30 mm Gatling gun and ability to loiter over a target area make it an ideal weapon system for the mission, officials said.

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It is unclear whether the White House will be able to convince enough lawmakers on Capitol Hill to approve the Defense Department’s request. The Trump administration intends to quickly refill any U.S. military stockpile of weapons and munitions so they aren’t depleted.

“We’re also still dealing with the environment that [former President] Joe Biden created, which was depleting [military ordnance] and not sending them to our own military but to Ukraine,” Mr. Hegseth said. “We think these munitions are better spent in our own interests at this point.”

Mr. Hegseth also lashed out at the press and “ungrateful allies in Europe” while declaring that the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran has been an overwhelming success. He said the media all too often wants to paint Epic Fury as a quagmire sucking the U.S. into an endless war.

“Nothing could be further from the truth. Epic Fury is different. It’s laser-focused [and] it’s decisive. Our objectives given directly from our America First president remain exactly where they were on day 1,” he said. “A dishonest and anti-Trump press will stop at nothing … to downplay progress, amplify every cost and call into question every step.” He said “Trump derangement syndrome” is in the very DNA of the press corps.

“They want President Trump to fail,” Mr. Hegseth said. “Our objectives are unchanged, on target and on plan: destroy missile launchers and Iran’s defense industrial base so they cannot rebuild, destroy their navy, and [ensure] Iran never gets a nuclear weapon.”

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America’s NATO allies, including stalwarts like the U.K., have rebuffed requests from the White House to join the mission to open the critical Strait of Hormuz to ship traffic.

“A regime like [Iran] refusing to abandon its nuclear ambitions is not just a regional problem; it’s a direct threat to America, to freedom, to civilization [and] the world,” Mr. Hegseth said. “Our ungrateful allies in Europe, and segments of our own press, should be saying one thing to President Trump: Thank you.”

On Thursday, leaders from several European countries and Japan signed a joint letter condemning Iran’s attacks on unarmed commercial vessels in the Gulf. They offered their willingness to contribute to “appropriate efforts” to ensure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

“Maritime security and freedom of navigation benefit all countries,” the letter stated. “We call on all states to respect international law and uphold the fundamental principles of international prosperity and security.”

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• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.