Connecticut Democrat Sen. Richard Blumenthal told reporters Tuesday he is "more fearful than ever" that U.S. military "boots on the ground" may be needed in Iran after a closed-door briefing from senior Trump administration officials on the Middle East conflict.
Blumenthal made the comments following a classified Senate briefing led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, War Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Caine.
"I just want to say, I am more fearful than ever after this briefing that we may be putting boots on the ground and that troops from the United States may be necessary to accomplish objectives that the administration seems to have," Blumenthal said after the meeting.
He also said he remained uncertain about the administration's long-term strategy.
"I also am no more clear on what the priorities are going to be of the administration going forward, whether it is destroying the nuclear capacity of Iran or simply the missiles or regime change or stopping terrorist activities," Blumenthal said, adding that the administration should provide broader briefings to the American public.
The Senate briefing comes days after the U.S. and Israel launched preemptive strikes against Iran early Saturday, targeting military sites and leadership figures in Tehran.
The operation reportedly eliminated much of Iran's top leadership, including Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran has retaliated with missile strikes against Israel and U.S. facilities in the region, attacks that have killed six American service members, according to reports.
Despite Blumenthal's concerns, Rubio said the administration is not preparing to deploy ground troops.
"Right now we're not postured for ground forces," Rubio told reporters at the Capitol while emphasizing that the president retains the authority to take whatever military actions are necessary as commander in chief.
"That said, we believe the objective that we have set for this mission, which is the destruction of their ballistic missile capabilities, both launch capability and manufacturing, can be achieved without ground forces."
President Donald Trump has also declined to rule out the possibility of U.S. troops entering Iran if circumstances change.
"I don't have the yips with respect to boots on the ground — like every president says, 'There will be no boots on the ground.' I don't say it," Trump told the New York Post. "I say 'probably don't need them,' or 'if they were necessary.'"
Administration officials have defended the military campaign as a necessary step to prevent Iran's terror-linked regime from obtaining nuclear weapons and threatening U.S. interests.
"There is no way in the world that this terroristic regime was going to get nuclear weapons, not under Donald Trump's watch," Rubio said.
Meanwhile, the State Department said more than 9,000 U.S. citizens have already been evacuated from the region as the conflict intensifies.
On Capitol Hill, some Democrats are pushing for a war powers resolution to limit Trump's authority to continue military operations without congressional approval.
Republicans have largely rallied behind the president's actions, arguing the strikes have weakened a major threat to U.S. security and global stability.
House and Senate lawmakers are expected to continue receiving classified briefings as the situation in the Middle East evolves.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.