Rood also served as Acting
Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security from September 2007 to January 2009, and as
Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation from October 2006 to September 2007. He served at the
United States National Security Council as special assistant to the president and senior director of Counterproliferation and Director of Proliferation Strategy for Counterproliferation in Homeland Defense. Rood served at the Defense Department as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Forces Policy, and at the
Central Intelligence Agency as an analyst following missile programs in foreign countries. In addition, he served as senior policy advisor to U.S. Senator
Jon Kyl of Arizona. On October 16, 2017, Rood was nominated by President
Donald Trump to become the
Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. He was confirmed by the
United States Senate on January 3, 2018. In January 2018, Secretary
James N. Mattis released the
National Defense Strategy (NDS) which placed the order of priorities for the Department of Defense as China, Russia, North Korea, Iran and then Countering Terrorism. As the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Rood was responsible for the implementation of the NDS worldwide. On February 19, 2020, Rood was asked to leave the administration by President Trump and offered his resignation effective February 28, 2020. Following his departure from the government, Rood returned to the private sector. In 2023, he was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of
Momentus Space, where he has directed the company's strategic pivot toward national security space architecture and advanced orbital robotics. ==See also==