Former Trump Official Demands ‘Weeks of Heavy Bombing’ to Destroy Iran’s Regime

By Michael Katz | Thursday, February 19, 2026

Robert Wilkie, former U.S. Veterans Affairs secretary and undersecretary for defense in President Donald Trump’s first term, stated on Thursday that any U.S. military action against Iran must be sustained and forceful to “destroy the regime” and create conditions for freedom for the Iranian people.

“These people have been at war with us since 1979,” he said, recounting memories of U.S. soldiers taken hostage during the Iran crisis at the start of the Islamic Republic.

“It can’t be a one-off. It can’t be a United States Navy show,” he added, stressing that operations must go beyond limited displays of force.

Wilkie called for “weekslong campaigning of the heavy, heavy bombing of the United States Air Force, the B-52s, the B-2s, the B-1s that will break the ground, destroy the bunkers, and really put an end to … one of the most evil regimes in modern history.”

He also referenced Iranian hostility toward the U.S., saying: “If somebody tells you over and over again he wants to kill you, believe him,” a quote attributed to former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir.

“We’ve got to make sure this isn’t just a brief engagement,” he said, asserting that letting Tehran “off the hook” would have “cataclysmic” consequences for global peace.

Wilkie linked the confrontation with Iran to broader geopolitical dynamics, noting implications for battle spaces in Ukraine and China. He suggested that eliminating Tehran’s influence alongside Russian and Chinese footholds in Venezuela would “change the global chessboard.”

His comments come amid a growing U.S. military buildup in the Middle East tied to rising tensions with Iran. In late January, the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group and supporting ships were deployed to the region, with additional air, naval, and missile defense forces sent to deter instability and prepare for potential operations against Tehran.

The buildup represents one of the largest concentrations of U.S. naval assets near Iran in years. The USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group is soon expected to arrive in the eastern Mediterranean.

Wilkie said the aim should be to “eliminate the instruments of terror, the ballistic missile facilities, and what’s left of their nuclear program,” and to give “the Iranian people” a chance at freedom once Tehran’s leadership is defeated.