White House Rebukes Pete Hegseth Over U.S. Ammunition Shortages

The White House has sent U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth a formal memo warning that weaknesses in America’s munitions industry pose a direct threat to national defense readiness. The document, set to be published in the Federal Register tomorrow, cites limited production capacity, fragile supply chains, dependence on long-lead items, and manufacturing bottlenecks as obstacles to producing and replenishing ammunition, missiles, and other military equipment.

The warning clashes sharply with Hegseth’s public statements. In a recent appearance on CBS’s "Face the Nation," he dismissed reports of an ammunition crisis as "a made-up story" and said U.S. stockpiles were "excellent" and only getting stronger. Fox News reported the dispute on Tuesday.

According to the memo, those industrial limits could undermine the United States’ ability to produce, sustain, and expand its weapons inventory for national defense. Hegseth has also previously said there was no ammunition shortage for U.S. operations against Iran and that existing stockpiles would allow the military to "hold out as long as necessary."

The presidential memo gives Hegseth broad powers under the Defense Production Act to seek voluntary agreements and action plans intended to break the industry’s stagnation. The internal White House assessment says U.S. demand for precision munitions and air defense missiles has risen sharply over the past two years, and that without drastic intervention, the country’s ability to rebuild stocks in a large-scale conflict would be severely limited. The clash underscores a broader struggle in Washington over whether the U.S. can sustain deterrence if it cannot produce enough ammunition.