White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt took a victory lap Thursday while briefing reporters on the success of Operation Midnight Hammer, the Trump administration’s covert strike that crippled Iran’s nuclear program.
Leavitt opened the briefing by echoing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s earlier remarks, emphasizing that the mission achieved its central goal: rendering three of Iran’s primary nuclear enrichment sites completely inoperable.
“The objective of Operation Midnight Hammer was to destroy the regime’s nuclear enrichment capacity and stop the grave nuclear threat posed to the United States, Israel, and the rest of the free world,” she declared. “The mission was an overwhelming success!”
Leavitt then took a swipe at the press corps, highlighting just how tight-lipped the administration had been during the lead-up to the strike.
“This was one of the most secretive and successful operations in United States history. I think many of you in this room would agree with that because none of you knew about the strike until it took place,” she said, eliciting some visible discomfort from the room.
. @PressSec “The objective of OPERATION MIDNIGHT HAMMER was to destroy the regime’s nuclear enrichment capacity and stop the grave nuclear threat posed to the United States, Israel, and the rest of the free world.
The mission was an OVERWHELMING SUCCESS!” pic.twitter.com/wMh627jl4b
— DOD Rapid Response (@DODResponse) June 26, 2025
But the press secretary reserved her harshest criticism for CNN’s Natasha Bertrand, whose reporting — based on a leaked, “low confidence” intel report — had cast early doubt on the strike’s effectiveness.
“This is a reporter who has been used by people who dislike Donald Trump in this government to push fake and false narratives,” Leavitt said, referring to Bertrand’s past reporting on the Hunter Biden laptop. “She should be ashamed of herself. That is not what reporting is. Journalists are trained to find the facts and the truth.”
?WOW — @PressSec absolutely obliterates this Fake News CNN reporter after she leaked false intelligence about the strikes.
The reporter in question? Natasha Bertrand — a repeat offender when it comes to pushing disinformation:
– Claimed the Hunter Biden laptop story was… pic.twitter.com/jFYWkqdyUx
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) June 26, 2025
The briefing further cemented the Trump administration’s messaging: that the media’s eagerness to damage Trump politically led to misinformation, even at the cost of downplaying a major U.S. military success.