Trump Rages at Leak Over Arms Shortfall --- Probes are ordered into revelations of depleted munitions amid Iran conflict.

 

 

“WASHINGTON -- President Trump has ordered new investigations into the disclosures of the Pentagon's munitions stockpile, administration officials said, an escalation of his effort to battle damaging revelations about the Iran war.

 

Trump made the demand after weeks of headlines describing depleted munitions levels associated with the war, according to administration officials, despite administration assurances that the U.S. has what it needs to fight Tehran and world powers such as Russia and China.

 

The president's frustration with the war has grown, advisers say, as he sees few good options to force Iran into dismantling its nuclear program or more broadly bringing an end to the conflict.

 

The White House has maintained that the U.S. had enough munitions for any operation, but at the same time threatened anyone leaking information on the issue.

 

"The United States has the most powerful military in the history of the world, with more than enough firepower to carry out any operation the president orders at any time and place," said Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary.

 

 

"Anyone entrusted with access to classified military information who leaks it to the media is betraying that trust and breaking federal law, and should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

 

When asked Thursday about munitions levels, Trump told reporters that some were more available than others, adding "we always want more." The U.S. was "in very good shape," he said.

 

Trump has privately vented to cabinet officials and aides about the reports on munitions levels because he says they embolden the Iranian regime and weaken the U.S. position in trying to cap Tehran's nuclear program, according to U.S. officials.

 

The president's fury has sparked discussions with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Trump's national security team about what remained in the U.S. arsenal and would be needed for future operations, the officials said.

 

Before Trump launched the war five months ago, Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other senior aides briefed him that a military campaign on Iran could significantly drain stores of air-defense interceptors and offensive missiles, The Wall Street Journal previously reported.

 

The frustrations have roiled Trump for several weeks, senior administration officials said, with one saying the headlines drove him "crazy." The Washington Post on Wednesday reported that Trump expressed frustration with Hegseth at a cabinet meeting at Camp David last week, which the White House denies. The Post says it stands by its reporting.

 

Munitions were on Trump's mind shortly after a cabinet meeting last week at Camp David, said U.S. officials. He called Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg, who has led a yearlong effort to increase munitions production, to discuss the Pentagon's munitions levels, according to people familiar with the call. Hegseth was also on the line, one person said.

 

Other senior defense officials were scrambled for a last-minute meeting that night to brainstorm ways to quickly increase production of critical munitions, the people said. NBC News reported earlier on Feinberg's discussion with colleagues.

 

Feinberg has tried dangling incentives before the weapons industry to speed up production. But while the Pentagon reached agreements with companies to boost production of key munitions, such as Patriot and Thaad missiles, over the next seven years, many of the deals still require Congress to approve funding.

 

Trump has previously pressed senior Pentagon officials and top military contractors to produce more munitions quickly, summoning acquisition officials and industry executives to the White House for a contentious meeting in June, the Journal previously reported.

 

The defense industry can do little to address the shortfall, however, without completing the contracts, according to experts and people familiar with the discussions.

 

On Thursday, Vice President JD Vance defended the Republican administration's handling of the war in Iran in a closed-door meeting with Republican senators. Vance told senators that Feinberg has been getting more companies involved and was working to accelerate munitions production, according to Sen. John Hoeven, (R., N.D.) who attended the meeting.

 

Hegseth, Feinberg and Caine have also been meeting privately with Republican lawmakers in an effort to secure support for their spending request.” [1]

 

1. World News: Trump Rages at Leak Over Arms Shortfall --- Probes are ordered into revelations of depleted munitions amid Iran conflict. Ward, Alexander; Dawsey, Josh; Seligman, Lara; McGraw, Meridith.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 07 Aug 2026: A7.