A Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee (DPBAC) has been established by the Department of War (DOW) after Secretary Pete Hegseth dismissed all members of the agency’s advisory boards last year.
The DBAC, also simply referred to as the Defense Policy Board (DPB), is one of the Pentagon’s key advisory committees, focusing on providing “recommendations on matters concerning defense policy and national security issues” to the secretary, deputy secretary, and the undersecretary for policy.
A Monday press release named Ambassador Robert Lighthizer, who served as U.S. Trade Representative during the first Trump administration, as the board’s chair, and former Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) as the vice chair.
The previous members of the Pentagon’s dozens of advisory committees were all let go in an April 2025 memo from Hegseth, after his then-chief-of-staff Joe Kasper launched a 45-day review requiring all boards to justify how their advice “benefited the DoD, the federal government, and the United States,” and how they aligned with President Donald Trump’s goals of “restoring the warrior ethos.”
The Pentagon reestablished the DPBAC in August, according to a Federal Register notice.
In addition to the board’s chair and vice chair, Hegseth approved the appointments of 13 other members, which include military veterans, former lawmakers, entrepreneurs, professors, security contractors, conservative politicos, and attorneys:
Marc L. Andreessen — Billionaire cofounder and general partner of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, mega-donor to Trump’s super PAC, and member of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).
Michael N. Anton — Conservative writer and former official in both of Trump’s administrations as both a deputy assistant for strategic communications on the National Security Council (NSC) and a director of policy planning in the State Department.
Rachel A. Bovard — Former policy director for the Republican-led Senate Steering Committee and legislative director for Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), and current vice president of programs at the Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI).
Tom P. Feddo — Founder of national security consulting firm Rubicon Advisors, LLC, former senior U.S. Treasury Department official during the first Trump administration, senior adviser to policy analysis firm Capstone DC, former special assistant to the general counsel of the U.S. Navy.
Mike J. Garcia — Former Republican congressman for California’s 27th district and who participated in over 30 combat missions in Iraq as a U.S. Navy pilot before becoming a business development manager at Raytheon and eventually running for office in 2020.
Kenneth P. Jones — Healthcare executive for the U.S. Army, professor at the Uniformed Services University, and adjunct professorial lecturer at American University.
Blake G. Masters — Former chief operating officer of billionaire Peter Thiel’s investment firm and philanthropic foundation, and candidate for the U.S. Senate and House in the 2022 and 2024 elections, respectively.
Daniel P. McCarthy — Editor of the conservative academic quarterly journal Modern Age, previously editor at the American Conservative, and distinguished fellow in conservative thought at the Heritage Foundation.
Michael P. Pillsbury — China expert who chaired the DPBAC during the first Trump administration and held adviser roles across multiple administrations since President Jimmy Carter.
Adm. (Ret) Charles A. “Chas” Richard — President of the Institute for Defense Analyses who previously served as commander of U.S. Strategic Command and as Commander Submarine Forces, Submarine Force Atlantic and Allied Submarine Command.
Francis P. Sempa — Attorney, adjunct professor of political science at Wilkes University, contributing editor to American Diplomacy, columnist at RealClearDefense, author of Geopolitics: From the Cold War to the 21st Century.
Christopher A. Williams — Another former chairman of DPBAC and founder of an independent security and technology consulting firm who has previously served as special assistant to the secretary of defense and as acting undersecretary of defense for policy.
Theo J. Wold — Former Acting Assistant Attorney General in the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Legal Policy and Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy during the Trump administration.
Olivia Rondeau is a politics reporter for Breitbart News based in Washington, DC. Find her on X/Twitter and Instagram.
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