CNN
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Democrats and Republican senators who emerged from the highly anticipated classified briefing on Thursday had not agreed exactly to Iran that it had withdrawn its country’s nuclear program.
Many Republicans said they believe Iran will take years to build nuclear weapons, but some admitted that the threat has not been completely neutralized. But Democrats said the photo wasn’t that clear. He then said that the US strike had regained Iran for a few months.
According to an early US intelligence report assessment explained by the seven, US military strikes at three Iranian nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy core elements of the country’s nuclear program and returned only for a few months.
The analysis of damage to the site and the impact of strikes on Iran’s nuclear ambitions is ongoing and could change as more intelligence becomes available. However, the early findings of the assessment are at odds with repeated claims that President Donald Trump “completely and completely wiped out” Iran’s nuclear enrichment facility.
“To me, we’ve only just pulled back Iran’s nuclear program in a few months. There’s no doubt that the program has suffered damage, but allegations that their program doesn’t seem to stand up for reasons told reporters to the Connecticut Democrat Senator.
“I don’t think the president was telling the truth when he said the program had disappeared,” Murphy said.
Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer also said the briefings did not provide a clear explanation for Trump’s claims.
“President Trump said the nuclear stockpile was completely wiped out. I didn’t receive the right answer to that question,” Schumer told reporters, accusing the White House of “a consistent strategy, a game of ending, no plans.”
Thursday’s classified briefings had been a long wait inside the Capitol. Senators from both parties were eager to hear more information after a surprising US attack in Iran. Slate, the US’s highest-ranking leader, spoke to the senators: Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Chairman of Chief of Staff Dan Kane, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe. The group will also briefly explain the House of Representatives on Friday morning.
Republican senators, including Trump’s top allies, left a briefing promoting the effectiveness of US strikes – in some cases reflecting Trump’s precise language of “eliminating” Iran’s nuclear weapons capabilities.
“They’ve been wiped out. No one can use them right away,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
Inside a secure room in the Capitol basement, one attendee, Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, important details of the early Pentagon Intelligence Assessment, first reported to the senators during the briefing, were read aloud by the senators during the briefing.
“They went through it and talked more about what it was and what it was saying. I thought it answered a lot of questions,” said Holy, who was a critic of the voices of US military intervention in the Iran-Israel conflict.
“I think it’s very fair to hear them now, walk through intelligence, walk through what we know at this point and say that this military mission has achieved its purpose for what they intended,” Holy said.
Other Republicans were more cautious about reflecting Trump’s early language.
Asked if the Iranian facility had disappeared, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas said, “I think the mission goal has been achieved. I think it’s a vague term or I can interpret it in many ways.
Cornin said it is unclear how long it will take for Iran to build a nuclear weapon, saying, “Well, I don’t think anyone was underground to assess the damages. So I don’t know if someone can give you the exact number. I certainly can’t.”
When asked if the site had disappeared, Sen. Rick Scott of Florida said, “It’s all within your definition.” Looking for his definition, Scott repeated to the reporter: “I think the military did an incredible job.”
But Sen. Tom Cotton, who heads the Senate Intelligence Email Committee, was even more decisive. He said the strike “protects the world from the risks of Iran’s nuclear weapons for many years.”
“I think this mission was an incredible success and effectively destroyed Iran’s nuclear program,” Cotton criticized Cotton for focusing on the early evaluations produced by the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Department of Defense Intelligence Agency.
CNN reports that it could take days or weeks for the final US military “combat damage assessment” by DIA to be completed, several sources familiar with the Pentagon process told CNN. According to one of the sources, the initial DIA analysis was generated just 24 hours after attack. The decision was “low confidence,” the source said, as it was just a preliminary analysis. US officials acknowledged that it has not been coordinated with the broader intelligence reporting agency, and the document itself may take weeks to produce a final assessment.
“I think Iran’s nuclear development is retarding the year,” Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall told reporters after the briefing.
While many Democrats refused to overwhelm the weight of the briefing at all, Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, said Thursday’s briefing was “constructive” even if he said there was something the administration should do to get a more complete assessment of the damages in his view.
“We still don’t have a full assessment of last week’s strike, and when we do that, I think it answers many of the current unanswered questions,” Coons said.
Koons was asked how much he felt Iran’s nuclear program had retreated by the strike. “We got more relevant details about it, but I think it’s too early to get a full grasp of many critical, currently unanswered issues in practice.
Sen. Mark Warner, a top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Email Committee, also gave a careful evaluation of the strike.
“Obviously, damage has been caused to Iran’s nuclear program,” Warner said, but added, “it will take some time to get a final assessment of the damage.”
“My concern is when people are too early to conclude. Obviously, the president will make a comment on Saturday night before a complete expungement assessment, hopefully that’s the final assessment, Warner said.