Zach Nunn postpones fundraising event with Pete Hegseth after Iran backlash

Last Thursday, U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA) announced that he will postpone a planned fundraiser with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after receiving backlash.

Nunn announced the fundraiser, dubbed “Operation Top Nunn,” late last month, hours after President Donald Trump launched an unprovoked war with Iran. The announcement sparked resentment from Democratic lawmakers concerned with Hegseth attending a fundraiser while there is no clear end to the war with Iran in sight. Already, the war has killed seven U.S. service members.

“I hope that he will have developed a plan for what’s next and how we’re going to end this war in Iran before he goes to a fundraiser,” Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) told Huffington Post.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) also blasted Hegseth for holding a campaign event “in the middle of a war he started.”

Why is the least qualified Secretary of Defense in American history holding a campaign event with a do-nothing Republican in the middle of a war he started? pic.twitter.com/8KaFaIZTH1

— Hakeem Jeffries (@hakeemjeffries) March 4, 2026

Last Thursday, Nunn made an X post announcing that “Operation TOP NUNN is postponed.” Nunn also said he would attend an event that Saturday to honor the Americans who have been killed.

My focus, as a combat veteran, dad, and Member of Congress is mission first: prioritizing Iowa service members forward deployed, supporting families on the homefront, and helping American citizens in harm’s way get to safety.

Over the past several days, we’ve worked relentlessly…

— Zach Nunn (@NunnForCongress) March 5, 2026

During a press briefing at the Pentagon last week, Hegseth implied that the “fake news” media is making Trump look bad by focusing on the deaths of American soldiers. He also said the focus should be that “America controls” the fate of Iran — even as the Trump administration is hoping for a civilian uprising in the country.