According to people familiar with the matter, the Pentagon officials have approached Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors and the chief executive of Ford Motor, Jim Farley.

"A Pentagon official told the Daily Mail that the War Department is 'committed to rapidly expanding the defense industrial base by leveraging all available commercial solutions and technologies to ensure our warfighters maintain a decisive advantage'," The Daily Mail said Wednesday. "GE Aerospace and Oshkosh, a vehicle and machinery maker, were also involved in these talks, which were described as preliminary and wide-ranging."

The U.S. is currently fighting two wars, Ukraine and Iran. While the U.S. supplies weapons to Ukraine, it also supplies weapons to Israel to fight Iran. In addition the U.S. directly fights Iran, a country that is supplied weapons by Russia.

"The Trump administration wants automakers and other American manufacturers to play a larger role in weapons production, reminiscent of a practice used during World War II," The Wall Street Journal said.

Other U.S.-based manufacturers were approached as well, The Daily Mail reported:

Oshkosh, based in Wisconsin, reportedly began talking with the Pentagon as early as November, when War Secretary Pete Hegseth called for companies to begin upping production.

Logan Jones, chief growth officer for the company's transport segment, said Oshkosh's discussions have largely been focused on 'where could we bring that capacity in a way that matches our core capability'.

Oshkosh currently builds tactical troop carriers for the Army and US allied countries, but most of the company's revenue comes from non-defense sources.

The Pentagon seeks a record-high $1.5 trillion war budget, a 42% increase from the previous fiscal year.

"The funding boost would include the new Golden Dome missile-defense system, designed to protect America from ballistic missiles, and a significant increase in production of battleships, including new Trump-class ships," Infowars reported on April 4. "The increase—42% over the previous fiscal year—would be paired with cuts across a number of domestic projects, including climate, housing and education projects. The aim will be to reduce domestic spending by 'reducing or eliminating woke, weaponized and wasteful programs, and by returning local responsibilities to their respective governments'."