Elbridge Colby, under secretary of defense for policy, testifies during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday, March 5, 2026, in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s top policy official faced a second round of questions from Congress this week regarding the Trump administration’s homeland‑focused National Defense Strategy and how the recent attacks on Iran fit into those priorities.
House members on both sides of the aisle vented their frustration with Elbridge Colby, the undersecretary for defense policy, over the Pentagon’s communication with Congress.
“I want to know about the President’s decision making, not your interpretation about being aligned,” Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, said during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday. “We’re all comfortable with Mr. Trump’s and President [Donald] Trump’s decision. We’re not comfortable with Mr. Colby.”
The discussion of the 2026 National Defense Strategy, published in January, was split into two sessions. The open hearing was followed by a closed meeting.
Colby met with senators on Tuesday. It was the first opportunity for Congress to publicly question a senior administration official about the recent U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran.
The top senators on the Armed Services Committee told Colby the National Defense Strategy says little about the country’s “vital interest in the Middle East,” as well as “a flawed proposal and it is now, in many cases, obsolete.”
Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., the ranking member of the House committee, asked Colby on Thursday what success looks like in Iran. Colby echoed what Trump administration officials have said — the objectives are to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities, destroy Iran’s Navy and ensure Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.
Smith also said that the strikes contradicted Trump’s campaign promises.
“He sincerely meant [that if] you put me in the office, I’m going to do things that’s going to make sure that we don’t go to war with Iran. He failed,” Smith said.
Colby was quick to say the president’s not wrong.
“I don’t think, sir, it failed,” Colby said. “The president has demonstrated … that he is prepared to use the military instrument. He’s used the peace and the diplomacy abundantly over the last year and a half.”
The U.S. and Israel launched extensive strikes against Iran on Saturday morning after months of stalled negotiations over the country’s nuclear program. Trump later that night announced the operation had resulted in the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader. In addition to the strikes on Iran, Israel has attacked the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.
Six soldiers have died fighting in the fighting. They include Capt. Cody A. Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Fla.; Sgt. 1st Class Noah L. Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Neb.; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole M. Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minn.; Sgt. Declan J. Coady, 20, of West Des Moines, Iowa; and Maj. Jeffrey R. O’Brien, 45, of Waukee, Iowa, as among those killed Sunday at Port Shuaibu, the main industrial port in Kuwait.
In a separate statement, the Pentagon said it believes Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert M. Marzan, 54, of Sacramento, Calif., also died in the attack. His identification has yet to be confirmed by a medical examiner.
The toll has fueled questions about whether the campaign could widen further.
Colby was asked by multiple members of the House committee about the Iran strikes and provided few details.
“This is not another Iraq War. This is not nation building,” the undersecretary said toward the end of the hearing.
Chairman Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., makes remarks during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday, March 5, 2026, in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., the chairman of the committee, took issue with the removal of a brigade from Romania last year. The Romanian defense ministry announced last October that U.S. troop deployments to Romania are being scaled back as part of a Pentagon plan to reduce force levels in Europe.
The plan called for ending the rotation of a U.S. Army brigade to Romania that also had elements dispersed across several other countries in the Black Sea region.
The U.S. began rotating a brigade to Romania in the aftermath of Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The increased troop presence in Romania and other parts of the eastern flank was intended to reassure allies unsettled by Russian aggression in Europe and deter Moscow from potentially making a move on NATO territory.
“Last October, just two weeks before the discussion to withdraw the U.S. brigade from Romania, you told me during the meeting in your office … that you weren’t aware of any ongoing discussions. I’m concerned that you weren’t being truthful with me,” Rogers said, drawing an appalled facial expression from Colby. “We may not always agree on a policy decision, but the Constitution requires you and your team to have forthright conversations with this committee.”
Rogers also added that Congress did not learn of the decision until three days later. Colby’s defense was that his office has spoken with the House and Senate Armed Services Committees hundreds of times over the past four or five months.
“We see that completely differently.” Rogers added. “I just want you to know going forward, we feel very strongly that Congress has a say so in these matters. And we’re going to help you all understand that in the coming months and years.”
