Congressman Jeff Crank discusses Iran airstrikes, presidential powers, and damage to Iran's nuclear program

The following transcript and video represents the full interview between Colorado Congressman Jeff Crank (R) and KOAA Senior Reporter Brett Forrest on the US-Iran airstrikes. The interview was conducted Wednesday June 25, 2025.

The transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.

BRETT FORREST
Taking us back to Saturday, walk me through your timeline on Saturday, when and how did you learn about these US strikes on these three sites in Iran?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
I found out about them on Saturday evening, really, as they were happening and which I wouldn't expect to know anything else. I mean, I think we all sort of suspected that this could happen, but I think it was done with pretty amazing deception on the part of both the President and the US military, to kind of do a sleight of hand and let Iran think that they would either be coming from a different area or they had more time.

You know, that's really the way it needs to be. The leadership of Congress needs to be notified. You know, as it's happening, I don't know. I don't need to know that as an individual member of Congress, they need to keep that plan secret and surprise in the operation. So, I thought that was done flawlessly.

BRETT FORREST
And so to be clear, you found out, you say, as they were happening, is that you finding out through House leadership or DOD, if you can share a little more detail?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
I actually found I was at a dinner that night, so I kind of was sitting at a table and couldn't, like, step out of the room. Actually, I was at an event with Eric Trump, so the president's son and they locked the room down.

So, once he started speaking, nobody could get up to leave, from a security standpoint. So I couldn't even get up to go grab my phone.

So, I just found out from a news alert, came over my phone, and then obviously, when that dinner was over, I started talking to some other folks.

We have not yet had a briefing. We were going to have one yesterday, classified briefing of the assessment, but it now looks like it's going to be Friday, and I think that's, you know, for me, that's fine. Sometimes those assessments take a little while to fully understand the damage and things like that. So, looks like on Friday, we'll have a classified briefing on what the actual damage was.

BRETT FORREST
Speaking of that, some reports from a Pentagon assessment that apparently leaked yesterday showing that maybe the damage was only delaying their nuclear program by a few months. Do you have anything to say about that potential assessment?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
Well, again, I haven't, I don't have an official assessment that anybody's given me. I think that... early on... had pretty low confidence in that. And I think that's pretty common. I mean, you get different assessments of it.

My understanding is that the Israelis probably have people on the ground who will... sort of go to that facility... they'll make sort of their own assessment. So, I mean, I just have to, at this point, take them on their word that it was pretty significant damage, and it set them back.

And I think that the situation kind of bears that out, right? You have Iran sort of lost the will right after that, right? You saw that sort of pitiful attack on our base in Qatar, even notifying the US that they were going to do it. I mean, that's telling us that this is a regime that is decimated, that they're sort of losing their will.

So, my guess is that those facilities were destroyed. You know, there's also been discussion about... they took the material out before those weapons hit. I don't know the answer to that again, I'll know a little bit more later this week.

BRETT FORREST
And so you're a member of Congress, but also on the House Armed Services Committee. Do you think you should have maybe been given more notice of this attack, or are you okay with how it played out?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
No, I'm okay with how it played out.

Look... we can't expect, and I would never expect, the Commander in Chief, whether it was Joe Biden or someone. This is the play in our system, right? It's what our founding fathers put into the Constitution.

On the one hand, they gave the Congress the authority and the power to declare war and I take that seriously, but they also gave the President the power to be the commander in chief and to protect our assets.

You know, would anybody suggest that the President had to notify the Congress before he reacted to the attack on Qatar? You know? I mean, these are kind of split second decisions, or time of war decisions. And that needs to be made by a President.

And I think we got to be very careful no matter who that President is, whether it's Bill Clinton or, you know, Barack Obama or Donald Trump, we have to be a little bit careful to not pin them in and give them the ability to actually be our Commander in Chief.

BRETT FORREST
So you kind of answered this question, but so what is your position on the President being able to take unilateral military action? But then also keeping in mind what we heard DNI Gabbard testify back in March that Iran wasn't necessarily close to building a nuclear weapon, at least according to her testimony. So, do you think this was even necessary action to take?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
Well, I do think it is. And I will tell you, I was in classified briefings, and obviously not going to talk about what I learned in those but... I believe everybody believed that Iran was very close to developing a nuclear weapon, and we've known that... for very long time, I think at the last bit, it became obvious that maybe the assessment there was was a little bit... wrong, and that they were actually closer than... many people thought. So, I can't speak to the assessment that Tulsi Gabbard had, because I just don't know too much about that, other than, you know, what I saw in the news.

But yeah, I mean on the ability of the President to take unilateral action. I absolutely think that the President had every right to do that. Again, he's the Commander in Chief. He can do that.

We passed a War Powers Act right in the 1970s that gave the President the authority to do those sorts of things. He's got 60 days to then, you know, come back to us and ask for authorization. So, it's essentially what we're having here in our discussion is the debate that the founders had over having a Commander in Chief, but yet having the power to declare war rests with the Congress, and it's just a struggle that is inherent in the Constitution.

But I think both sides have to be the executive and the legislative branch have to be willing to give a little in that to each side, right?

BRETT FORREST
And do you agree with Speaker Johnson saying the War Powers Act is unconstitutional and might interfere with presidential powers in the Constitution?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
Well, I mean, you know that's, that's an argument that the Speaker’s made. You know, it's never been, we haven't tested it in court. So, I mean, that is something that could be tested, but... even at that, it doesn't speak to the fact that the President is the Commander in Chief... it would be an unreasonable expectation to say that he can't take quick action like that as Commander in Chief. I just think we have to afford that to our President, and we have throughout history.

BRETT FORREST
So do you agree with Speaker Johnson or–?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
Well, I mean, again, I think it should all be litigated. I don't know whether it's Constitutional or not Constitutional, but I think it should probably, you know, at some point there'll be litigation, but you need an actual case to do that.

BRETT FORREST
And do you have any fears yourself that... these actions might pull us into a broader conflict again in the Middle East?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
Obviously that's always a concern anytime you use force. And I think the President, I mean, you see his reluctance on this, I think it surprises a lot of people, a lot of people who don't like President Trump, are sort of perplexed by that in him.

They've tried to make him out to be someone who wants war, and he's not at all that. I mean, I think he wants to avoid war. In fact, I think... he's probably very disappointed that he can't say, ‘Hey, on my watch, we never had conflict.’ He would have loved to say that.

...peace is important, but at some point you have to look at what's the cost of that, and does the cost become too high?

I would argue that if Iran was able to develop nuclear warhead, nuclear capabilities and put it on those missiles that they've been sending into Israel that we would basically have a nuclear annihilation of the State of Israel.

I mean, in a sense... another Holocaust after the one that happened during World War II.

To me, that's not a price that I'm willing to pay. So, peace is important, but there are some things that are worth fighting for in this world, and I think making sure that we don't have that and protecting the United States right?

Those same nuclear ambitions were directed at the US as well, if they could have snuck a nuclear device into JFK or Logan Airport or somewhere else. I don't think any of us doubt that they would have done that.

BRETT FORREST
And you already touched on how you think the Iranian response was weak with the Qatar attack. Do you have any fears that maybe our military targets are at risk, or especially here in Colorado, since we do have so many military assets. Should we be concerned at all about any attacks?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
Well, I think America should be vigilant, and we should expect that they are going to do that. And I would say this, we've seen from the first night of the attacks in Iran by Israel. We've seen a steady degradation of their ability to respond right?

The first night, they fired 100 missiles and immediately, Israel started to go in and take out some of their capabilities, some of their launchers and some of their missiles. And they only have so many.

And you saw that every night, yet fewer and fewer missiles that they were able to fire into Israel. So we degraded that capability. Israel, degraded their command and control structure and their ability, their air defense system.

So, all of those things were degraded, which leaves Iran with fewer and fewer options, and they get more desperate.

And I think what we saw with Qatar and the attack on the installation in Qatar, I think, was a bit of desperation on a part of a dying regime. They'll continue, potentially, to be more desperate.

And the more desperate they get, they can lash out through proxies and through other means, if they have folks here in the United States, that's always a potential that they would do, you know, domestic attacks here in the United States.

So, I do think the American people need to be ready for that. They need to be prepared and vigilant and work with law enforcement. This is the reason.

And you know, this gets us to the issue that I've talked about in the past, of immigration and the federal government working with the state and local law enforcement to keep us safe. And this all plays into that right now.

So, that is the expectation of the American people, is that federal, state and local government will work together to keep us safe and... that's what I hope for.

BRETT FORREST
And since we are running out of time, anything else about this topic and the Iran attack, you want to add or mention? That I didn't ask you specifically?

CONGRESSMAN JEFF CRANK
No, well, the only thing I would say is, I think that we are at a moment that is a pivot point in the history of the Middle East, right?

This is a moment where, you know, in President Trump's first term, we had the Abraham Accords, where we brought more moderate Arab states that were essentially willing to recognize Israel's right to exist, something that hasn't really happened before.

I think this presents us that opportunity. Most of the Arab states were not overly upset with the Israeli actions in Iran, because they're as tired of Iran being unsettling in the region as anyone else.

And so you have countries like the new leadership of Syria, Jordan and many others who would like to kind of see the nonsense stop there. They just want to be prosperous. So, this may open the opportunity for us to have a new and lasting peace in the Middle East, if we can seize that.

BRETT FORREST
All right, and then, I know it's a classified briefing on Friday, but we will reach out to see what you can share once you learn more.

Well, Congressman Crank, thank you for your time on this issue. We appreciate it.

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