The Pentagon pulled senior Defense Department officials from the Aspen Security Forum on Monday, a day before the four-day summit in Colorado was set to begin. Why it matters: The bipartisan national security forum has attracted Republican and Democratic administration officials for years.

Top officials at the Pentagon office that played a key role in designing the bombs used in the strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities more than two weeks ago cannot say whether the weapons were successful in reaching the deeply buried bunkers.

At Trump's behest, Senate Republicans elevated a conspiracy theorist who called Obama a “terrorist leader” to a senior Defense Department position.

The announcement comes days after Grok spewed antisemitic and racist statements to its users, including praise for Adolf Hitler and “the white man.” It also referred to itself as “MechaHitler.” The debacle kick-started a wave of celebration amongst online extremists, many of whom called for the creation of more hateful AI chatbots.

The U.S. Department of Defense plans to continue investing in critical minerals projects to ensure a diverse American supply of the building blocks for weapons and many electronics, a defense official told Reuters on Tuesday.

At a trillion dollars, this year’s defense budget request is big — and a record-setting $179 billion is just for research and development.

Key Takeaways MP Materials' Mountain Pass, Calif., facility, the only operational rare earths mine in the U.S., and its magnet plant in Fort Worth, Texas, have drawn interest from investors ranging from the Pentagon to tech giant Apple in recent days.

The plan, which would gut the three-star positions atop five naval commands, is part of a Pentagon push to thin the military brass.