The New York Times reported Musk would receive a briefing on plans for any potential war with China. The president and defense secretary said the meeting was about DOGE.

Planning for a war with China has dominated Pentagon thinking for decades, well before a possible confrontation with Beijing became more conventional wisdom on Capitol Hill. The United States has built its Air Forces, Navy and Space Forces — and even more recently its Marines and Army forces — with a possible fight against China in mind.

President Donald Trump pushed back on reports that DOGE head Elon Musk was being briefed on US military plans for a potential war with China while at the Pentagon on Friday, saying he wouldn’t want show such plans “to anybody.