Defense Secretary James Mattis rebuked an NBC News report that President Donald Trump wanted to increase the U.S. nuclear arsenal "tenfold" after a meeting with defense officials in July.
"Recent reports that the president called for an increase in the U.S. nuclear arsenal are absolutely false,” Mattis said in a statement, Military.com reported. "This kind of erroneous reporting is irresponsible.”
The NBC News report on the July 20 meeting rekindled a feud between the outlet and Trump.
According to Military.com, Mattis does not often comment on the president's statements, but found it necessary to put out his own statement on the issue.