Senators fault Pentagon briefing on National Defense Strategy

A classified briefing on the Trump administration's National Defense Strategy has drawn sharp criticism from senators in both parties, who say the Pentagon's top policy adviser failed to deliver a required update and left key questions unanswered.

Defense Undersecretary Elbridge Colby appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday for what was expected to be a congressionally mandated briefing on implementation of the strategy. Under the annual National Defense Authorization Act, that classified session was due no later than September 15.

Senators said no such update materialized. "They owe us a report, and we did not get the report," said Sen. Mike Rounds, a South Dakota Republican on the committee, who described the session as not what members had expected.

Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, called the briefing "just sort of dodge and punt" and said it was unusual for someone appearing for a mandated update to arrive without a statement.

Sen. Jacky Rosen, a Nevada Democrat, said Colby "was not forthcoming" and did not address the committee's concerns. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona said he left with more questions than he had going in, after asking about the strategy for the conflict with Iran and about decision-making he said has left the United States with a "munitions deficit." Experts say military contractors would need roughly three years to replenish stockpiles of certain advanced weapons such as defensive missile interceptors.

The strategy document, released in January, reinforces Trump's "America First" approach of favoring nonintervention overseas and questioning decades of strategic relationships with European allies.

Lawmakers also pressed Colby on whether troops could be deployed to polling places during November's midterm congressional elections. Asked directly whether he had discussed deploying the National Guard for voter security on Election Day, Colby said he was aware of some such discussions but was not leading on the issue. Cramer said Colby "never once said 'yes' or 'no.'"

The prospect of troop deployments at polling sites has drawn growing attention as the midterms approach. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a Michigan Democrat, recently asked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to confirm that no troops would be sent to polling places. Caine replied in a letter last month that there are "no plans to send Federal military personnel or Federalized members of the National Guard to polling places during the 2026 elections."

Not every senator was dissatisfied. Sen. Jim Banks, an Indiana Republican, called the briefing "constructive, substantive" and said it answered all his questions. Sen. Roger Wicker, the Mississippi Republican who chairs the committee, declined to discuss the closed session.