Trump’s missile-stockpile denials clash with his own past warnings, as leak hunt intensifies
President Donald Trump’s latest drive to hunt down “treasonous” leakers is colliding with a problem of his own making: his past remarks appear to show
President Donald Trump’s latest drive to hunt down “treasonous” leakers is colliding with a problem of his own making: his past remarks appear to show he was warned the U.S. missile supply was running thin before he pressed ahead with strikes on Iran. That undercuts his public insistence this week that America still has “massive” stocks of munitions.
The dispute stems from a run of reports about depleted U.S. weapons inventories during the war with Iran, which began on Feb. 28. Reuters and CBS News said the military has burned through nearly all of its Army Tactical Missile Systems and Precision Strike Missiles, while CNN reported low levels of Patriot and THAAD interceptors, raising alarms among experts about air defenses and the years it could take to rebuild pre-war stockpiles.
Trump denies shortages, targets reporters
On Thursday, Trump said on Truth Social that the U.S. had “massive amounts” of munitions and that defense contractors were building plants and factories at a record pace. He also vowed that the people behind the reports were “treasonous” leakers who would face long jail terms and were being hunted down.
The White House and Pentagon both denied a Washington Post report that Trump lashed out at Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during a Camp David cabinet meeting over concerns about the “depletion” of missiles. The Post said Trump complained the shortages were one reason he had not ordered larger strikes on Iran.
Trump has publicly said he prefers a deal with Tehran over deeper conflict, and has pointed to progress in peace talks as a reason for operational delays.
Old warning, new trouble
But the leak hunt has run into an awkward line from Trump’s own past. The legal blog emptywheel reported that, weeks before the attack, he had said he had been “warned” about the missile shortage and responded that the decision to proceed was his.
That account, if accurate, weakens the force of Trump’s denials. It also hands fresh ammunition to critics who say the administration is trying to suppress uncomfortable reporting rather than answer basic questions about whether the U.S. can sustain another round of strikes if the conflict escalates again.
For allies watching from abroad, the issue reaches beyond Washington politics. Stockpiles of long-range missiles and air-defense interceptors are central to how the U.S. projects power, supports partners and deters adversaries. If inventories are lower than the White House says, replacement could take years. And for now, the White House is still stuck defending a simple line: there is no shortage, only leakers.
