Colby says nuclear Iran an ‘existential danger' to the U.S., backpedaling on past views
Elbridge Colby, the nominee for undersecretary of defense for policy, said at his Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing on Tuesday that he now views a nuclear-armed Iran as an 'existential' threat to the United States homeland and said he would provide military options to the administration to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon if necessary. Colby also sought to distance himself from Michael DiMino, who prompted alarm among supporters of Israel after being named deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East. Colby's comments suggest he's backtracking on his past views that the U.S. could contain a nuclear-armed Iran, and that the consequences of striking Iran to eliminate its nuclear program would be worse than those of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon, which had raised serious concerns for Senate Republicans. But when pressed in detail about his past comments, Colby also tried to justify them by arguing he was merely pushing back against what he viewed as an overly hawkish consensus at the time. And he underscored, later in the hearing, that the Trump administration's goal is to reach a 'trust-but-verify negotiated agreement' with Iran — with a military option available. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), a skeptic of Colby's nomination, questioned Colby on his views towards Iran, saying he had concerns about Colby's past comments and that they were inconsistent with the administration's policy. Pressed by Cotton on whether he considers a nuclear-armed Iran to be an 'existential danger to us … not just a 'severe danger,' as you said in response to Sen. Gillibrand or a 'significant one' as you said in your written answers,' Colby said he agreed. 'Yes, a nuclear-armed Iran — especially, Senator, given that … we know they've worked on ICBM-range capabilities and other capabilities that would pose an existential danger to the United States,' Colby said. He said that it was consistent with his understanding that Iran's nuclear program poses an immediate danger to Israel and U.S. Arab allies and that Iran would have the capabilities to strike the continental United States within a few years. Colby agreed, when asked by Cotton, that if diplomacy with Iran fails and the U.S.' only options are a military strike to prevent Iran from nuclearizing or allowing the nuclear program to proceed and hoping that it can be contained, he would provide the administration with credible military options to eliminate Iran's nuclear program. At his confirmation hearing for a top Pentagon post, @ElbridgeColby said he now views a nuclear-armed Iran as an 'existential' threat to the United States homeland and said he would provide military options to the administration to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon if… pic.twitter.com/1EtVQEnQ4u Jewish Insider (@J_Insider) March 4, 2025 'I believe we should not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon and if confirmed I would believe it's my responsibility to provide credible good military options,' he said later, responding to Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK). Pressed by Sullivan, Colby provided an evasive response about his past accommodationist rhetoric about Iran. 'I would say a lot of what I was arguing against at the time, these conversations 15 years ago, a lot of the opponents I felt had a casual or in some cases even flippant attitude towards the employment of military force,' Colby said. 'That's a lot of what I was arguing against. Was my wording always appropriate, was my precise framing always appropriate? No.' In an exchange with Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), Colby said that his 'advocacy and commentary especially as a public intellectual, if you will, was pushing back against a lot of people who frankly I would say were quite cavalier about the employment of military force.' He added that the current U.S. leadership 'understand that we need to be militarily strong, but also understand the downside risks of the deployment of military force, it needs to be rational.' Colby said he agreed with Cotton that military options must go beyond providing Israel with certain bombs and leaving it to take out the Iranian nuclear program. Asked by Cotton if one option could be allowing Israel to use advanced U.S. bombers, refueling tankers and heavy bombs to strike Iran, Colby said, 'I wouldn't want to get ahead of the president on specific decisions, but I think those are the kinds of things that should be absolutely part of the discussion … and those would be the kinds of things that I would raise for the consideration of the secretary of defense and the president.' Again prompted by Cotton, Colby said that having credible military options on the table could make it easier to achieve a viable nuclear deal with Iran. Cotton, the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, also indicated during his questioning that he'd be open to a nuclear deal with Iran that fully dismantled Iran's nuclear program. Cotton recalled that, in his written answers provided prior to the hearing, Colby had said 'the United States should deny Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon. Outside the hearing room, Vice President J.D. Vance, who introduced Colby, told Jewish Insider that the administration's policy is 'extremely clear, that we cannot tolerate nuclear proliferation, especially in Iran.' 'The president has been very clear he doesn't want to tolerate a nuclear-armed Iran,' Vance said. 'I don't know what Mr. Colby has written in the past, but I'll say that every single person that we nominate to a position is going to have at least one thing that they disagree with the president about. That's okay.' Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the committee's chairman, began his questioning of Colby by asking about DiMino, underscoring Republican concerns about the top Middle East official and the way that the selection of DiMino — seen as a Colby acolyte in isolationist foreign policy circles — has colored Colby's confirmation proceedings. Colby denied he was responsible for hiring DiMino and rejected DiMino's view that the U.S. does not have any critical interests in the Middle East, saying that is not consistent with the administration's policy. 'He does not speak for me and I think I have a number of views that differ materially from his, from what I understand, just in public reporting,' Colby said of DiMino. He similarly distanced himself from Andrew Byers, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for South and Southeast Asia, who has advocated for a dovish approach toward China. Wicker asked Colby if it was correct that Colby had 'made no determination as to whether' either man 'would be retained in those positions' —suggesting that they could be fired once he takes office. 'As part of not presuming, my understanding is that I should not be even thinking in that way,' Colby said. 'What I would say is that, if confirmed, I would obviously be only one person in a chain … but what I would commit to you is that anybody in my organization, if I'm confirmed, should be in line with the president's agenda.' The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations had urged senators on the committee to question Colby about his views on Iran and about DiMino at his confirmation hearing.
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Business of Fashion
an hour ago
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French Senate Backs Law to Curb Ultra Fast-Fashion
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an hour ago
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Losing this particularly irked many House GOP lawmakers. — Allowing mining in a protected wilderness area in the Midwest. The contentious provision would have reversed then-President Joe Biden's move to protect the Boundary Waters area. — Part of the policy ending increased food aid for households that also qualify for heating and cooling assistance. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins previously complained about this. — Extending a policy requiring federal agencies to procure a certain amount of biofuels or bio-based products. By cutting these items, the bill retains its ability to pass the Senate with a simple majority, rather than 60 votes. While Senate Republicans are still mulling their own tweaks to the bill, and could seek to restore some of the measures now on the chopping block, these changes need to be fixed now before the Senate votes on it. More policies could get slashed. 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Some complicating factors for Mfume: He's the oldest in a four-person field that includes two candidates in their forties. Rep. Stephen Lynch, 70, has more seniority on the panel. Rep. Robert Garcia won the Congressional Hispanic Caucus' endorsement. Mfume is unlikely to win official support from the Congressional Black Caucus because another member, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, is also in the race. And Mfume's 2004 departure from the NAACP was marred by sexual harassment allegations, though Mfume denies wrongdoing. Senior Republicans skipping Trump's military bash Top Republicans including Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and the chairs of the House and Senate Armed Services committees won't be attending the president's multimillion-dollar military parade Saturday, Lisa, Calen and Mia report. In fact, among 50 Republicans we surveyed this week, only seven said they were staying in town to attend the Army's 250th birthday celebration (which is also Trump's 79th) — Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Byron Donalds, Elise Stefanik, Cory Mills, Rich McCormick, John McGuire and Lisa McClain. The White House is shrugging off the absences; an official granted anonymity to discuss planning for the event said senior military leaders and at least 15 Cabinet secretaries are slated to attend. And GOP lawmakers broadly said they support the spectacle that could cost upwards of $40 million, though a few are balking at the price tag. Thune says Trump's tax promises are here to stay Thune said Tuesday that Trump's campaign-trail tax pledges will be included in the Senate's version of the megabill, even as some Republicans mull scaling back key provisions to help expand business tax incentives, our Jordain Carney reports. 'The president, as you know, campaigned hard on no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, social security, interest on car loans,' Thune told reporters. 'They were addressed in the House version of the bill and I expect they will be in the Senate, as well.' Thune also said he'll likely return to the White House for another megabill meeting with Trump before week's end. Meanwhile, as negotiations continue over the Senate's megabill changes, SALT Republicans are seeking a meeting with Thune over the state-and-local-tax deduction, which could happen as soon as today. House Freedom Caucus members Chip Roy and Scott Perry crossed the Capitol Tuesday to meet with fellow deficit hawks Sens. Mike Lee, Rick Scott and Ron Johnson, Jordain scooped. Scalise skeptical of Texas redistricting push Count Scalise among the Republicans unnerved by the White House's push for Texas lawmakers to redraw the state's 38 U.S. House districts. Scalise on Tuesday cautioned that the effort — pitched as a measure to preserve the GOP majority in the midterms — shouldn't inadvertently put incumbents at risk. 'You have to balance a lot of things,' he told reporters. Members of the Texas GOP House delegation didn't show much enthusiasm for the idea in their closed-door meeting Monday night, a person familiar with the discussions told Nicholas. They'll huddle with White House officials Thursday to discuss the redistricting plan further. Johnson backs Trump's military force in LA Speaker Mike Johnson is standing behind Trump's decision to dispatch both the National Guard and the Marines to Los Angeles amid clashes between protestors and law enforcement over ICE. He said there's a 'clear distinction' between condemning violent protesters in California and Trump pardoning rioters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, though he declined to elaborate. Meanwhile, Collins broke with GOP leadership Tuesday over the issue. 'I would draw a distinction between the use of the National Guard and the use of the Marines,' Collins told reporters. 'Active duty forces are generally not to be involved in domestic law-enforcement operations.' POLICY RUNDOWN SCOOP: MAHA MEETING MELTDOWN — Key farm-state GOP senators had a tense meeting with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and other Trump administration officials Tuesday over the Make America Healthy Again report, which criticized pesticide use, four people tell our Grace Yarrow. Senators in the meeting included Agriculture Chair John Boozman, Appropriations Agriculture Subcommittee Chair John Hoeven, Chuck Grassley, Cindy Hyde-Smith and Roger Marshall, along with Kennedy adviser Calley Means. The three other people familiar with Tuesday's discussion described the tone as 'heated.' At one point, Kennedy pounded on the table, one individual said. 'If this was to try to calm people down, they failed miserably,' the person told Grace. SIMPSON BUCKS THE WHITE HOUSE — Rep. Mike Simpson, a senior appropriator, is pushing back on White House budget chief Russ Vought's enthusiasm for so-called 'pocket rescissions,' which would allow the Trump administration to make permanent cuts to federal spending without congressional approval, our Katherine Tully-McManus and Meredith report. 'I think it's a bad idea,' Simpson told reporters Tuesday. 'It undermines Congress' authority.' A pocket rescission refers to when the White House moves to claw back money already approved by Congress with fewer than 45 days left in the fiscal year, then withholds that funding through Sept. 30 in an attempt to cancel it permanently. SENATE GOP SNAPS BACK — Senate Republicans are finalizing a scaled-down plan to shift some federal food aid costs to states as a way to pay for their megabill, five people with direct knowledge of the negotiations told Meredith and Grace. The move to downsize the House-passed plan comes after intense pushback from Republican senators, including some of Trump's closest supporters. They're concerned that red states in particular would be hit with billions of dollars in new costs to administer the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which helps feed more than 40 million low-income Americans. The reworked Senate plan under consideration would force states with the highest payment error rates to pay 15 percent of SNAP benefits — a lower rate than the House's 25 percent proposal. It also would scale down the costs for states with lower error rates, allowing some of them to avoid footing any of the cost-share for benefits. REPUBLICANS BACK OFF MEDICARE CHANGES — Senate Republicans are bursting their own Medicare bubble after some lawmakers floated making changes to the program to help pay for their megabill, Jordain and Robert King report. Sen. Kevin Cramer, among the first lawmakers to raise the possibility of including Medicare changes in the party-line package, conceded in an interview the concept lacked political momentum: 'There aren't many of us courageous enough to talk about it.' Best of POLITICO Pro and E&E: CAMPAIGN STOP NORTON'S FLIP-FLOP — Eleanor Holmes Norton, D.C.'s nonvoting House delegate, said Tuesday she would seek reelection, only for her spokesperson to say hours later that the aging representative is 'in conversations' about retirement, Nicholas reports. Norton, who turns 88 this week, has faced increasing concern about her capacity to continue serving in Congress, particularly as D.C. faces a Congress-induced budget shortfall. SHERRILL ADVANCES IN N.J. GOV RACE — Rep. Mikie Sherrill clinched the Democratic nomination for New Jersey governor Tuesday night. The state's electorate leans blue, but the race between Sherrill and Trump-backed Republican Jack Ciattarelli is expected to be competitive. If Sherrill wins in November, there will be a special election to succeed her. Expect a crowded Democratic field there; her district favors Democrats, our Madison Fernandez writes in. Sherrill's the latest House Democrat elected in the party's 2018 wave to seek higher office. TUNNEL TALK DEMS HOPE TO AVOID ANOTHER SHELLACKING — Democrats are looking to break a four-game skid against Republicans in the Congressional Baseball Game tonight after getting blown out last year. It's been ugly: Republicans have outscored Democrats 70-29 in the past four games, including a 20-run victory last year. The game is played at Nationals Park and benefits charities, including the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington. Names to watch: Rep. Greg Steube has been the GOP's ace pitcher and won the MVP last year for Republicans. Sen. Eric Schmitt and Reps. August Pfluger, Morgan Luttrel and Brad Finstad are all dangerous hitters. For the Democrats, Reps. Chris Deluzio, Peter Aguilar and Jimmy Panetta are among their heavy hitters. They've struggled to find a replacement on the mound for Cedric Richmond, who left the Hill for the Biden administration in 2021, but Aguilar and Deluzio have stepped in to help pitch in recent years. The forecast: Elections analyst Nathaniel Rakich crunched the numbers and says the game is 'likely Republican.' THE BEST OF THE REST New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver indicted following ICE protest, from our Ry Rivard Freedom Caucus chair leads in earmarks, Jack Fitzpatrick and Ken Tran at Bloomberg Government Lawmakers Traded Stocks Heavily as Trump Rolled Out 'Liberation Day' Tariffs, from Katy Stech Ferek, Jack Gillum, James Benedict and Gunjan Banerji at The Wall Street Journal 'Super Cagey': Inside Rep. Mark Green's Mysterious Resignation From Congress, from Reese Gorman at NOTUS CAPITOL HILL INFLUENCE TELEHEALTH TAKEOVER — The American Telemedicine Association's lobbying arm is blanketing more than 40 Capitol Hill offices today in a bid to extend expanded pandemic-era access to virtual health care. Popular and broadly bipartisan telehealth flexibilities that started during the pandemic expire at the end of September. 'We are most definitely not standing by during the budget reconciliation process — there's just too much at stake,' ATA Action executive director Kyle Zebley said in a statement. ALSO FLYING IN — Several trade groups are on the Hill this week to discuss the Trump administration's tariffs, including the National Retail Federation and the American Seed Trade Association, POLITICO Influence reports. Meanwhile CEOs with AdvaMed will meet with lawmakers today to try and win support for a new medtech Medicare coverage bill. JOB BOARD Cally Barry is now senior adviser and comms director for Rep. Ralph Norman. She most recently was comms director for Rep. Morgan Luttrell. Marybeth Nassif is joining Jones Walker as a director in the government relations practice group. She previously was a professional staff member for the House Appropriations Committee. HAPPY BIRTHDAY Former Rep. Mike Conaway … CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz … Kim Oates of the House Radio/TV Gallery … J Street's Jeremy Ben-Ami … Cesar Gonzalez of Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart's office … Tad Devine of Devine Mulvey Longabaugh … Lorissa Bounds … Kristen Thomaselli ... Mary Kate Cunningham … CNN's Morgan Rimmer … Sofia Jones of the House Agriculture Committee … Jonathan Martinez of Haleon … Tamar Epps of the National Head Start Association … Amy Barrera of Thune's office … TJ Adams-Falconer TRIVIA TUESDAY'S ANSWER: Paul Hagner correctly answered that Richard Nixon was the first president to visit all 50 states while in office. TODAY'S QUESTION, from Paul: William Henry Harrison had the shortest tenure as president. Who had the second shortest tenure? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Inside Congress. Send your answers to insidecongress@ CORRECTION: Yesterday's newsletter misstated the time of a House Democratic leaders press conference and misspelled Sang Yi's name — our apologies.
