Experts erupt as White House won't rule out Iran boots on ground: 'That is on the table'

The White House caused a social media stir on Wednesday by leaving the door open to a ground invasion of Iran.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stopped short of ruling out ground troops during the first briefing since the military campaign launched.

"I know there's many leaders in the past who like to take options off of the table without having a full understanding of how things could develop. So again, it's not part of the current plan, but I'm not going to remove an option for the president that is on the table," Leavitt said."

The carefully worded statement suggests the administration is keeping all options on the table as airstrikes continue pummeling Iranian targets.

Since Saturday, U.S. and Israeli forces have unleashed a devastating campaign against Iranian military infrastructure, targeting nearly 2,000 sites and killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other senior officials.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth declared the campaign a decisive victory, telling Pentagon reporters: "I stand before you today with one unmistakable message about Operation Epic Fury. America is winning — decisively, devastatingly and without mercy." He later added that Iran was "toast" and if they didn't realize as such already, they would "soon enough."

Leavitt's remarks led to immediate reaction on social media.

Saba Hamedy of NBC News noted on X, "Trump, who campaigned against 'endless' wars, enters Iran with no end date."

Alexander Clarkson, lecturer for European politics and history at King's College London, wrote on X, "This probably means that US special operations units are already there."

Curt Mills, executive director of The American Conservative, chided on X, "Sneering intellectuals literally less than a week ago: 'no one is talking about boots on the ground.'"

Columnist Peter Rothpletz mocked on X, "deploy ICE."

Foreign policy reporter Laura Rozen wrote on X, "yes, there is an awful lot of 'not part of current plan' but is an 'option on the table' in this answer."

Dylan Williams, vice president for government affairs at the Center for International Policy, wrote on X: "Iran is nearly four times the size of Iraq. Its population is over 3.5 times that of Iraq’s when the US invaded in 2003. An invasion would be another costly and bloody quagmire. Lawmakers should vote to disengage US forces from the war and oppose any supplemental funding of it."