US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick issued a formal apology after facing intense criticism for incorrectly claiming that no American service members have died in the ongoing military conflict with Iran.
Flawed remarks on air
The controversy erupted following Lutnick’s interview on CNBC, where he characterized the military conflict in Iran as primarily an “economic choke-out.” During the broadcast, he explicitly asserted that “there haven’t been American deaths.”
Official Pentagon reports confirm that 18 U.S. service members have been killed and over 750 personnel injured since the outbreak of hostilities.
Mistaken military operations
Clarifying his statement in a public post on X, Lutnick admitted to misspeaking and conflating the active conflict in Iran with a recent U.S. military operation in Venezuela, where no American troops lost their lives.
“Eighteen members of our military have died and to those families my heart breaks and I am so very sorry for their loss.” Lutnick wrote, offering his condolences directly to the bereaved military families.
Clarification from above
Shortly before the public apology, President Donald Trump addressed the misstep on Truth Social, defending the Commerce Secretary by noting that Lutnick simply “had Venezuela on his mind” during the television appearance.
Despite the presidential defense, veterans’ groups and lawmakers quickly condemned the initial statement as a glaring oversight regarding military casualties.
