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“I want to read some quotes that I asked him and how he answered. He said that as far as a plan, they do have a plan. Always had a plan. The intelligence, the level of intelligence that they have had up to this point is truly amazing. I asked what you are saying is you know there is somebody on the ground in Iran that is going to rise up. Quote, yeah, I feel there is. I feel that and some of them are no longer with us to be honest because it was 49 leaders that were taken out,” Baier said.
The president explained that what was initially expected to take four weeks—the removal of Iran’s leadership—happened far quicker due to precise intelligence and planning.
“That was going to take four weeks we thought to get rid of the Iranian leadership and it is always, you know, if they hide it is a lot longer than four weeks. They would have been hiding. We were shocked when we heard what was going on. We knew exactly what was happening and where. 49 leaders. You know, they are talking about using people now that nobody ever heard of even they don’t know,” Baier added.
Trump emphasized the depth of Iran’s leadership vacuum following the strikes, noting the challenges Tehran now faces in succession planning.
“They are using people, studying people to be the leader that even they don’t know who they are. Can you believe that? I said this is — it’s a tough succession plan in Iran. He said 49 leaders is deep. It’s very deep. When they met, they met for breakfast. They assumed it was good for a lot of reasons. Number one they didn’t think we knew you. You never attack in the morning having to do with wind and sun and a lot of things. It was amazing that we knew everything we knew,” Baier explained.
Trump also pointed to Venezuela as a template for anticipating on-the-ground developments in Iran, praising U.S. military leadership for executing the mission with precision.
“He said there is a plan. He points to Venezuela as a template, which means to me that going in they had some sense on the ground of what was coming next. As far as the military operation, he said there is no greater military than the U.S. He was praising General Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth for the news conference he just watched,” Baier said.
In conclusion, Baier highlighted Trump’s satisfaction with the operation’s pace and effectiveness.
“Cut and dry as he said, central casting and they have a job to do and they are getting it done. So from the president of the United States, he is pleased, does believe that this is going faster than they thought. And he believes that four weeks is something that they had put as a calendar of what they were looking at as setting the table for the Iranians to do what they do,” he reported.
WATCH:
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth reinforced Trump’s message Monday, calling the U.S. military effort “laser-focused.”
“Destroy Iranian missiles, destroy Iranian missile production, destroy their navy and other security infrastructure and they will never have nuclear weapons,” Hegseth said, alongside Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan Caine.
Hegseth declined to give a specific timeline but assured Americans the operation would not drag on indefinitely.
“This is not Iraq,” Hegseth stated. “This is not endless. I was there for both — our generation knows better, and so does this president. He called the last 20 years of nation-building wars dumb and he’s right. This is the opposite. This operation is a clear, devastating, decisive mission: Destroy the missile threat, destroy the navy, no nukes.”
