Pete Hegseth has angrily lashed out at a reporter's 'foolish' question about US munitions supplies amid reports that key missile stockpiles are alarmingly low. The Defense Secretary, who was visiting Oshkosh, Wisconsin, on Monday for an 'Arsenal of Freedom' event, shot back at the reporter: 'Why would I answer a question about whether we do or do not have certain types of munitions?' Hegseth said disclosing such details would compromise operational security. 'I would never answer that question,' he said, visibly gesticulating in frustration. 'The American press is foolish to want to press an American War Department about where we may or may not be on classified, exquisite systems.' The reporter had asked about whether the Army had used 'virtually all' of its long-range ATACMS and their next-generation replacement, Precision Strike Missiles (PrSMs), during the Iran war. ATACMS and PrSMs are long-range missiles which enable US troops to strike targets from a safe distance without exposing aircraft and pilots to heavily defended airspace. Such weapons would be critical in a confrontation with China, which possesses advanced air defenses.

The missile stockpiles are under renewed scrutiny after the Washington Post reported Wednesday night that the massive munitions expenditure in Iran had raised alarms about America's readiness for a potential conflict with China in the Pacific. The Post reported that as many as three-quarters of the Pentagon's approximately 90 PrSMs had been depleted. The report said the US had also fired more than 1,000 Tomahawk cruise missiles in Iran, out of an estimated prewar inventory of 3,100 to 4,500, and had depleted roughly a quarter of its prewar stock of Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles. Those are offensive long-range weapons used to destroy targets deep inside enemy territory.

But analysts cited by the Post said the more immediate concern in a potential war with China was the depleted inventory of Patriot and THAAD interceptors - defensive missiles designed to shoot down incoming ballistic missiles. China possesses more than 3,000 ballistic missiles, the Post reported, while the US has expended most of its pre-Iran-war inventory of Patriot and THAAD interceptors, leaving only around 1,000 to protect its bases and tens of thousands of troops across Asia. But Hegseth insisted Monday: 'We had plenty when we needed it, and we have plenty now and we have plenty when we'll need them in the future, absolutely.'

The White House has meanwhile shifted toward an economic pressure campaign against Iran after reports that Trump clashed with Hegseth over missile shortages and the handling of the war. The White House and the Pentagon denied the account. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced what the administration called an 'economic D-Day' on Monday, threatening secondary sanctions against countries that continue doing business with Iran. Trump advisers and allies told The Atlantic that the administration's 'quiet stranglehold' is intended to push the conflict 'to the background,' while Republicans shift public attention to more politically favorable issues ahead of the midterms.

The approach would allow Trump to claim gradual progress in Iran without the daily spectacle of an all-out war. Hegseth is also confronting a potential shakeup at the top of the Army following a months-long influence battle with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll - an ally of JD Vance. The Defense Secretary is considering his chief Pentagon spokesman and senior adviser, Sean Parnell, to replace Driscoll, two sources told The Hill. Driscoll is considering an exit as early as Labor Day but the White House wants him to remain in place at least through November's midterms, a source said. The Daily Mail has contacted the Pentagon for comment.