Rubio defends Iran bombing as leaked intelligence shows contradictions

On Jun. 22, 2025, President Donald J. Trump ordered strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, claiming “complete obliteration” before U.S. bomb damage assessments were completed (Joint Chiefs Chairman Caine acknowledged assessments were not finished).

According to Reuters (2025-06-15), Trump vetoed an Israeli proposal to assassinate Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, citing concerns it would “inflame the conflict and potentially destabilize the region.”

Multiple U.S. intelligence assessments (PBS Intelligence Assessment) concluded that Iran had not decided to build nuclear weapons and that Supreme Leader Khamenei had not authorized a weapons program since 2003—an assessment Senator Marco Rubio on CBS Face the Nation (6/22/2025) dismissed as “irrelevant.”

Reuters reported (6/22/2025) a senior Iranian source said most of the highly enriched uranium at Fordow was moved elsewhere before the strikes, and the IAEA reported no elevated radiation levels after the attacks (Reuters, 6/14/2025).

On CBS Face the Nation (6/22/2025), Senator Marco Rubio repeatedly interrupted host Margaret Brennan—saying “you don’t know what you’re talking about”—and asserted Israel’s surveillance sees every truck movement in Iran, a claim intelligence reports contradict.