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U.S. General Defends Remarks on Israel
(The Hill) Jeremy Herb - The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told a Senate panel on Tuesday he did not counsel Israel against attacking Iran over its nuclear program. Gen. Martin Dempsey told lawmakers on the Senate Budget Committee, "We've had a conversation with them about time, the issue of time." Dempsey also defended his comment that Iran is a "rational actor." Dempsey said that he doesn't mistake Iran's rhetoric for a lack of reason, and said that even Iran's actions that are unacceptable to the U.S. fit the country's pattern over the past 30 years. "We can't afford to underestimate our potential adversaries by writing them off as irrational," Dempsey said. When Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) asked Dempsey whether a military strike by the U.S. was off the table, Dempsey responded, "Absolutely not."