President Obama met with his top national security, defense and military officials at the White House Wednesday evening, as the Pentagon prepares for new leadership.
Obama and Vice President Biden met with outgoing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, top Defense and military officials, and leaders of U.S. military commands in the Cabinet room, before having dinner at the Blair House, the nearby official state guest house.
{mosads}The gathering occurred a week after Hagel announced he was resigning and as Obama appears poised to nominate former Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter to lead the Pentagon.
It also comes at a time when the Pentagon is grappling with a new war in Iraq and Syria after more than a decade of war and is facing budget uncertainty and deep cuts.
The meeting, which was closed to press, also comes at time of strained relations between the White House and the Pentagon, which has been in the spotlight since the president’s announcement of Hagel’s resignation.
Former Defense secretaries Robert Gates and Leon Panetta have criticized the National Security Council for micromanaging the Defense Department, and friends of Hagel’s say his experience was no different.
Officials said the president hosts the dinner every year, which wasn’t intended to focus on any individual issue, but to give Obama a chance to check in with commanders, according to The Associated Press.
The U.S. strategy against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) was likely on the agenda, as the administration has faced growing criticism that it has not done more to stem the threat from the terrorist group.
Obama, who first authorized Iraq airstrikes in August, has ordered more than 3,000 U.S. troops to Iraq since June. However, ISIS still controls broad swaths of territory in Iraq and Syria.