The Wall Street Journal, citing “people familiar with the discussions,” says the Trump Pentagon has urged leaders in the U.S. automotive industry to do more for the war effort. America’s national weapons cache has, it seems, begun to look a bit depleted from all the arms we’ve shipped abroad, and rounds we’ve squeezed off lately—particularly in Ukraine and Iran.

CEOs including Mary Barra of General Motors and Jim Farley of Ford have been among the executives who have sat for talks with high-ranking defense officials about upping the production of arms in what are currently car factories, with labor from people currently employed as automotive workers.

GM, it should be noted, already makes a military vehicle called the Infantry Squad Vehicle or ISV.

In a speech in November of last year, Secretary of Defense/War Pete Hegseth described the industrial effort he’d like to see, but sounded a bit more like ChatGPT than he probably intends:

“We’re not just buying something. We are solving life and death problems for our war fighters. We’re not building for peacetime. We are pivoting the Pentagon and our industrial base to a wartime footing.”

The Pentagon’s statement to the Journal said the Department of Defense/War 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.”

Earlier this month, President Trump requested a $1.5 trillion military budget, with an explicit push for an expanded industrial base.

For no particular reason, here’s a flashback to high school history class: Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s 1940 “Arsenal of Democracy” speech, one of the all-time masterpieces of U.S. war propaganda.

In it, FDR makes the case that the Nazis are a threat to the American way of life, and that our allies need our help fighting them off. We’re not being asked to lay down our lives, he explains, just to come together as government, industry, and workers.

“We must have more ships, more guns, more planes—more of everything. And this can only be accomplished if we discard the notion of ‘business as usual.’ This job cannot be done merely by superimposing on the existing productive facilities the added requirements of the nation for defense.”

It’s utterly convincing, and listening to it today will stir up feelings of determination and patriotism you might have forgotten you could feel. If you feel inclined to listen to it in the current context, and play a little game of compare and contrast, that’s your business.

MILWAUKEE – Recent storms brought flooding back to parts of Milwaukee, causing new damage in neighborhoods still recovering from historic flooding last August.

Local perspective:

Along South Fulton Street in Bay View, piles of debris lined the road Thursday night as residents threw out water-damaged items from their basements. While the damage was not as severe as last year, neighbors said it is still frustrating.

Residents were also seen picking up dehumidifiers and fans, trying to dry out before more rain arrives.

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android

At the intersection of Howell and Oklahoma, which was underwater Wednesday night, a business flooded again.

“We’re kind of used to it over so many years,” said Michael Arenas, an insurance agent with Reilly’s Insurance Services.

Arenas said flooding has become almost an annual issue, often leaving water in the building’s basement. He pointed to window seals that were pushed out by floodwaters.

“We even had some of these windows sealed up over here, and the flood actually pushed these out pretty good, so we’re gonna have to get these […] yeah, they pushed them out pretty good, and put all these leaves and stuff down here from the window wells,” Arenas said.

What they’re saying:

About a mile away, homeowner Allison Gipp listed what she had to throw out after water entered her basement.

“Boxes, a TV, luggage, you know, wrapping paper and toilet paper,” Gipp said.

She said sewage backed up through her floor drain, reaching about three inches this time.

“They’re saying, ‘Well, our biggest priority is not to have sewage in people’s basements.’ Well… This is what keeps happening,” Gipp said.

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

In August, Gipp said her basement had about three feet of water.

The cleanup is not as extensive this time, but she said more storms could bring more work.

“Hopefully it doesn’t happen again,” she said. “Hopefully, if it does, it’s not worse.”

Gipp said she is holding off on fully cleaning her basement in case more flooding happens.