Rogin says on CNN, "Of course it's a war," and calls Vance's statement an attempt "to gaslight the American people"
Josh RoginLead global security analyst at Washington Post Intelligence, as identified by CNN, on CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip
Responding to CNN's Abby Phillip, who said the president had until recently called the fighting a war, Rogin said, "Of course it's a war, and Vance saying that it's not a war will come as a surprise to the families of the 18 U.S. service members who have perished in this war." He said trying "to gaslight the American people and say this is not a war is not going to work."
Responding to
Vice President JD Vance said he would not call the U.S. fight with Iran a war, saying there is no active shooting right now and that major combat operations lasted about six weeks.
“Of course it's a war, and Vance saying that it's not a war will come as a surprise to the families of the 18 U.S. service members who have perished in this war. It'll come as a surprise to the 750-plus U.S. troops who have been injured in this war. ... So, to gaslight the American people and say this is not a war is not going to work. People are not going to buy it. It seems callous. It seems to ignore the reality that America is in a war, even if it's just a blockade.”
Interview
Where this statement fits
Is the U.S. fight with Iran a war, as Vice President Vance says it is not?
At a White House press briefing on September 3, 2026, Vice President JD Vance was asked whether the fighting with Iran would be over before the midterm elections. He said, "I wouldn't call it a war. Right now, there is no active shooting," and said major combat operations lasted about six weeks. The next day President Trump said he calls it "a military conflict because it's small potatoes for us." Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Chuck Schumer, Rep. Ro Khanna, Rep. Thomas Massie and Democrat Amy McGrath, a former Marine pilot, criticized the description or Trump's defense of it. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the U.S. is "still in a conflict, for sure," and, as quoted by Al Arabiya English, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson called the fighting "an overt military aggression." The dispute is whether describing the fighting as not a war is an accurate and acceptable characterization.
Source and context
Interview
About this source
CNN's rush transcript of CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip for September 3, 2026, aired at 10 p.m. ET. Phillip plays Vance's briefing answer and asks a panel about it. CNN captions Rogin as lead global security analyst at Washington Post Intelligence. CNN marks the transcript as possibly not in its final form.
Before the quotation
Rogin spoke on the night of September 3, 2026, after CNN NewsNight aired Vance's briefing answer. Phillip said the administration "forgets that we have the tapes" and that the president had until recently called the fighting a war.
After the quotation
Another guest, Hal Lambert, founder and CEO of Point Bridge Capital, said, "I'm not saying it's not a war," and, "semantically, he can't call it a war because then it goes back to Congress."
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is Vance's statement that he would not call the fighting a war. Rogin says "Of course it's a war," calls saying otherwise an attempt "to gaslight the American people", and says it "seems callous." He denounces the statement rather than only offering a different label, so condemns fits better than challenges the characterization.
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- JD Vance
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The Dispute Index. "Rogin says on CNN, "Of course it's a war," and calls Vance's statement an attempt "to gaslight the American people"". First published: 2026-09-26. Last updated: 2026-09-26. https://disputeindex.com/events/2766-responding-to-cnn-s-abby-phillip-who-said