Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is set to headline the Reagan National Defense Forum with a clear, unapologetic message: rebuild the Arsenal of Freedom to keep America strong and our troops lethal. He’s touring factories and pitching a shift away from slow, closed systems toward open, fast-moving industry partnerships. The focus is on delivering real capabilities to servicemembers and on recharging American manufacturing for national defense.
Pete Hegseth arrives in Simi Valley to make the case that national security depends on the people building weapons and systems back home. He shared a video on X showing tours of facilities in California and framing the problem as one of process and culture, not just hardware. In the clip he laid out a clear approach to break old habits and speed results for warfighters.
“The era of vendor-locked, prime-dominated, closed architecture, cost plus over. We’re going to compete, we’re going to move fast, we’re going to do open architecture, we’re going to innovate, we’re going to scale, we’re going to do it at cost. Because this is a commitment to a mission,” Hegseth said in the video. That passage is a direct challenge to the procurement routines that let costs balloon and innovation stall. It signals a Republican appetite for market-driven fixes and accountability in defense spending.
Hegseth pushed the idea that modern warfare demands agility from the industrial base as much as from uniformed forces. “Whether you’re a vet or not who served already, all of you are serving the Department of War, the American people, and the Arsenal of Freedom,” Hegseth said. He emphasized that civilian engineers, factory workers, and tech partners are part of the frontline effort to give troops the edge they need in dangerous places.
He stressed that equipment matters in harsh, distant fights and that the nation cannot afford lagging supply chains or closed systems that lock commanders into outdated choices. The secretary reminded listeners that America must out-compete and out-innovate rivals not just on doctrine but on production lines. The message is practical: deliver capabilities faster, cheaper, and smarter so troops can operate with decisive advantage.
“So, this Arsenal of Freedom is built not just with men and women in camouflage. But it’s in folks in civilian clothes all across the country. Who are also putting in the work 24/7, to out-compete, out-innovate and out-manufacture our opponents,” Hegseth declared. That point reframes defense as a whole-of-society endeavor where entrepreneurs and shop-floor hands matter as much as generals. It’s a political argument for investing in American industry and embracing competitive procurement.
Hegseth’s keynote is scheduled to begin around 2:50 p.m. ET at the Reagan National Defense Forum and will include senior military and defense industry leaders. The forum takes place at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, a symbolic venue for a message about strength, national pride, and purpose. Expect the speech to press for policy and budget changes that favor speed, modular systems, and private-sector partnerships.
“We are rebuilding the Arsenal of Freedom,” Hegseth wrote on X alongside the video. That line captures the administration’s tone: unapologetic about prioritizing defense, proud of American industry, and determined to sharpen the tools available to combatant commanders. The language appeals to voters who want a government that backs its troops with real resources rather than warm words.
“The Reagan National Defense Forum (RNDF) brings together leaders from across the political spectrum and key stakeholders in the defense community, including Members of Congress, current and former Administration officials, senior military leadership, industry executives, technology innovators, and thought leaders,” the Forum said on its website. “Their mission is to review and assess policies that strengthen America’s national defense in the context of the global threat environment,” it added. Those lines underline the forum’s role as a place to press for concrete policy shifts and to rally support for a robust American defense industrial base.
The event is a moment to make policy stick and to connect rhetoric to real procurement reform. If the United States wants to stay ahead, it needs the factories, the systems, and the procurement mindset that treat speed and competition as strategic advantages. Hegseth’s remarks aim to turn a popular conservative principle—backing the military and American industry—into actionable steps that deliver results for troops and taxpayers alike.
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