Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) said Wednesday that if the U.S. needs to use the military option against Iran, America should deploy its “tactical nuclear devices.”

“I think if you have to hit Iran, you don’t put boots on the ground. You do it with tactical nuclear devices, and you set them back a decade or two or three,” Hunter said in an interview with C-SPAN. “I think that’s the way to do it — with a massive aerial bombardment campaign.”

Hunter said he wasn’t sure whether war with Iran was inevitable, but when asked if he felt military action would be necessary, he said, “I sure as hell hope not.”

The representative said that any war with Iran would be a “huge undertaking,” and that he thinks the U.S. will be cautious about military action after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“I think America now knows its limitations in that area and what we can do,” he said. “Do we want to spend 20 years there after we tear it down to build it back up again so that it isn’t run by a crazy tyrannical leader like has happened in, let’s say Iraq and Afghanistan again. You’ve got some crazy guys running the governments there.”

Hunter was skeptical of the interim deal with Iran to curb its nuclear capabilities.

“I don’t think this does anything, frankly,” he said of the agreement. “Even if they stop a little bit short of being able to enrich to a nuclear capability, they’re still going to be building up their ballistic missiles.”

Watch the video via C-SPAN:

[H/t Defense News]