WASHINGTON — President Trump pushed back forcefully Thursday against claims that the United States is running low on weapons, insisting the country has “massive amounts” of munitions available while promising to pursue the anonymous officials raising concerns about America’s military stockpile.
His remarks came after The Washington Post reported that Trump had confronted War Secretary Pete Hegseth during a cabinet gathering at Camp David last week, allegedly accusing him of giving a misleading picture of the nation’s weapons reserves.
The report said Trump told aides that ammunition shortages were a key factor behind his decision not to authorize sweeping new strikes on Iran. Publicly, however, the president has said any delay in military action stems from movement in peace negotiations with Tehran.
Taking to Truth Social, Trump rejected the account and wrote that the U.S. possesses “massive amounts of ‘munitions,’” particularly in certain categories, adding that additional supplies are being produced and delivered to the country when necessary.
Trump also said defense manufacturers are expanding at a historic pace, claiming they are building more plants and factories across the United States than ever before. He then warned that officials behind what he called “treasonous statements” are being tracked down and said prosecutors would seek lengthy prison terms.
The White House and the Pentagon both rejected The Washington Post’s reporting, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissing the story as “B.S.”
Leavitt, posting on X, said she personally attended the Camp David meeting with Trump and Hegseth and insisted the alleged exchange “literally never happened.” She claimed the story had been circulated to multiple news organizations by someone intent on damaging the secretary’s reputation.
“Unfortunately for them,” Leavitt added, Trump “loves the Secretary” and believes Hegseth is doing “a tremendous job.”
An analysis published July 27 by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) concluded that the US is running alarmingly low on defensive weapons.
America’s stash of Patriot interceptors, key to anti-missile systems, went from about 2,330 before the start of Operation Epic Fury Feb. 28 to around 800, according to the CSIS estimate.
Additionally, the stockpile of THAADs, used for high-altitude missile defense, went from 452 pre-war to around 250, per the analysis.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported Tuesday that the US has used “virtually all” its supply of Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) and Precision Strike Missiles (PrSMs). The Trump administration has disputed that claim.
Hegseth has said the Pentagon is working with defense contractors to ramp up production to replace weapons that have been used to assist Ukraine as it fights Russia’s four-year-old invasion.
However, outside experts have warned that it could take two years to replace the so-called “exquisite munitions” used during the war in Iran.
