Pentagon announces new Defense Policy Board
The Department of War announced on Monday the appointment of a new slate of members to the Defense Policy Board, decades-old advisory committee designed to provide independent and strategic advice to the senior leaders of the department.
Former Ambassador Robert Lighthizer, who served as U.S. Trade Representative from 2017 to 2021 during the first Trump administration, will serve as the chairman of the board, while former Sen. Norm Coleman, a Minnesota Republican, will serve as vice chairman.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth also approved 13 other individuals to join the board, including Marc Andreessen, owner of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, former Arizona Senate candidate Blake Masters, and retired Navy Adm. Chas Richard, who served as the 11th commander of U.S. Strategic Command. The other newly appointed members include Michael Anton, Rachel Bovard, Tom Feddo, Mike Garcia, Kenneth Jones, Daniel McCarthy, Michael Pillsbury, Francis Sempa, Christopher Williams, and Theo Wold.
The secretary initially disbanded the old Defense Policy Board last April after a 45-day review.
A notice published last August in the Federal Register indicated its return. The notice said in part, “All DPB members are appointed to provide advice based on their best judgment without representing any particular point of view and in a manner that is free from conflict of interest,” and that, “The DPB shall be composed of not more than 20 members who have distinguished backgrounds in defense and national security affairs.”
Members of the board serve between one and four years at a time with annual renewals.
This is the latest maneuver in a tit-for-tat regarding the Pentagon’s advisory committees. In late 2020, at the end of President Donald Trump’s first term, he removed and replaced many officials with those closer to him. Shortly after, then-Secretary Lloyd Austin removed them from their positions.
Hegseth has sought to overhaul the Pentagon in several ways during his time as secretary, including the firing of senior military officers with little explanation, an expected reduction in four-star generals, and the elimination of all diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts and programs.