Former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly told NewsNation’s Leland Vittert on Wednesday that the Trump administration is unlikely to force regime change in Iran, despite the president’s claims.
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that his goal of regime change in Iran has been achieved, even though he previously admitted he isn’t sure if the country’s new supreme leader is alive.
“We really had regime change. This is a change in the regime, because the leaders are all different,” he said.
Iran’s longtime supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in joint U.S.–Israeli strikes on February 28, 2026, and on March 8, Iran’s Assembly of Experts appointed his son, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, as the new supreme leader.
The new supreme leader has not been seen publicly since March 8, with Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth saying that he was believed to have been wounded in a strike.
Since then, there has been much speculation about his health, with questions remaining unanswered.
“A lot of people are saying that he’s badly disfigured. They’re saying that he lost his leg... and he’s been hurt very badly. Other people are saying he’s dead,” Trump said.
During the same March 16 event at the White House, Trump also admitted that “we don’t know who their leader is."
He added: “We have people wanting to negotiate. We have no idea who they are.”
O’Reilly argued that ousting the Iranian leadership would require “10,000 ground troops… which is never going to happen.”
He said the administration is now aiming for a deal “that will encompass inspectors going in to see that they aren’t enriching uranium, no ballistic missiles, and a bunch of other things in return for a lightening up of the economic sanctions against Iran.”
Vittert added that the hope rests on internal unrest in Iran: “The hope is that the Iranian regime is in such disarray… the Persians will rise up and throw out this weakened government, because that’s how weak it is.”
O’Reilly cautioned, however, that Americans should remain skeptical of Trump’s promises: “Why would you do that? You have to be skeptical of every single administration, but you’ve got to use your mind and see what’s in front of you. What’s in front of you is not good news for Iran, on any front.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
Since Trump launched the airstrikes, Trump has faced mounting pressure to explain what his administration ultimately hopes to achieve in Iran.
At first, he framed the strikes as a blow against Iran’s nuclear ambitions and said they could help bring about a leadership change in Tehran.
But as events developed, his explanation began to shift. Within days, he was recasting the military action as a preventive move designed to shield the United States and its allies from potential Iranian retaliation.
His timeline for the conflict also grew increasingly muddled. Early on, Trump said the fighting could continue for “four weeks or so.” Not long after, though, he claimed the campaign was “very complete, pretty much,” before later walking that back and saying the war would not be over that week, though it would end “very soon.”
Meanwhile, the Pentagon has asked Congress to sign off on another $200 billion for the Iran conflict, a massive funding request that appears at odds with Trump’s repeated claims that the war is nearly over.
The administration is also reportedly considering sending additional air and naval assets to escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz and keep the vital shipping lane open.
Adding to the confusion, Trump has repeatedly made claims about Iran that Tehran has publicly denied. He asserted that Iran has “agreed they will never have a nuclear weapon” and suggested the country “would like to make a deal,” despite Iran insisting that no direct negotiations with the U.S. are taking place.
Trump’s remarks followed his announcement Monday that the U.S. and Iran were in talks for a “total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East,” and that he would delay strikes on Iran’s key energy sites for five days while negotiations continued. Iran denied any talks.
