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When Michael P. Duffey told Bret Baier and a national audience that “we are making up for lost time,” he wasn’t offering a feel-good sound bite — he was describing a national emergency in our defense posture that federal leaders are finally treating like one. Duffey, who was sworn in as the Under Secretary of War for Acquisition and Sustainment on June 5, 2025, is the man charged with fixing the procurement mess that has left our stockpiles dangerously thin.
The reason for the urgency is painfully obvious: massive transfers of munitions and advanced systems to ally partners over the last several years exposed how brittle our supply lines and inventories have become. Rather than accepting excuses, Duffey’s office is pushing industry and the Pentagon to rapidly replenish critical weapons and ammunition that were sent overseas, a necessary pivot from the complacency of recent budgets and belt-tightening.
Practical steps are already underway, not just promises. The Department of War has been front and center with industry partners to expand production capacity, including new munitions facilities and public-private efforts designed to crank out rounds and missiles at scale. This is the kind of heavy-lifting Americans expect when the nation faces real threats, and it’s encouraging to see the Pentagon finally prioritize delivery over endless studies and glossy modernization charts.
The hard truth is that decades of consolidation in the defense industrial base left us vulnerable: single-source suppliers, mothballed lines, and a procurement culture that rewarded complexity over speed. Duffey has made no secret of the need to reform acquisition, break down stovepipes, and incentivize new entrants so the U.S. can surge production when it matters. Conservatives who’ve long warned that relying on bureaucratic inertia would cost us dearly are watching with cautious approval as these reforms move from paper to practice.
Washington’s budget priorities created the shortage; Washington must fix it — and that includes Congress doing its job. Duffey’s testimony before lawmakers and his public appearances hammer home that reforms require sustained funding and political backbone to see them through. If members of both parties claim to care about America’s security, they should stop the theater and start writing the checks that keep the warfighter supplied.
Make no mistake: this is more than procurement theater. It’s deterrence. Restoring stockpiles, modernizing production lines, and shortening acquisition timelines are the insurance policies that keep adversaries from testing American resolve. Duffey’s “making up for lost time” line should be a wake-up call to every patriot who believes that peace through strength is not optional.
Patriots should support bold action to rebuild our arsenals and demand accountability for results, not press releases. If Duffey and the private sector can sustain this momentum, we’ll finally move from crisis management to durable readiness — a safer future earned by American industry and American resolve. The alternatives—more hollowed-out inventories and emboldened rivals—are unacceptable, and it’s right that this administration and its acquisition chief are treating replenishment like the national priority it is.
