Trump's shifting Iran story blows up in Scott Jennings' face during fiery CNN panel

GOP strategist Scott Jennings's attempt to defend President Donald Trump's shifting story on the war in Iran blew up in his face on Thursday during a panel on CNN's "NewsNight" with Abby Phillip.

The Trump administration has justified coordinating recent bombing strikes against Iran by arguing that the country was close to achieving a nuclear weapon and that Iran presented an "imminent threat" to the U.S. While the administration has been saying everything is going great, recent reports indicate that the Iranians have figured out effective ways to fight back.

The regime recently selected former Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's son, Mojtaba, as the country's next ruler, and Iran has attacked multiple oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. In response, the U.S. will release some of its Strategic Petroleum Reserves and temporarily ease sanctions on Russian oil already at sea to combat rising energy prices.

Jennings claimed that the U.S. was "meeting its objectives" with the strikes, a claim that caused other panelists to pile on.

"What are our objectives?" Leigh McGowan, host of the "PoliticsGirl" podcast, snapped at Jennings.

Keith Boykin, an author and former Clinton White House aide, described the war in Iran as a "disaster." He also blasted the Trump administration for being dishonest about the war.

"What evidence is there of dishonesty?" Jennings asked sharply.

"In August, they told us they had completely decimated Iran's nuclear program. Then we had to get at them because they were getting nukes. Then it wasn't about nukes; it was about regime change. Then it wasn't about regime change; it was about terrorism," McGowan said. "So, they don't have their story straight. That's what they haven't been honest about, Scott!"