Hegseth Fires Army’s Top Uniformed Officer Amid Leadership Shakeup

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has dismissed the Army’s chief of staff and two other generals as the number of top military officials removed under the Trump administration grows to more than a dozen.The Pentagon spokesman says General Randy George will retire “effective immediately.” President Biden nominated him in 2023 to the role, which is usually a four-year term.The Pentagon did not give a reason for General George’s removal, which has become a pattern with the leadership purge under Mr. Hegseth. The firing was part of a battle over personnel decisions and the general’s relationship with Secretary of the Army Daniel P. Driscoll, with whom Mr. Hegseth has reportedly clashed in the past months, CBS News reported. Mr. Driscoll, a friend of Vice President JD Vance from Yale Law School, is a likely successor to Mr. Hegseth if he is pushed out of his role, the Sun has previously reported.The Joint Force and the Joint Chiefs thanked General George for his decades of service. “We are profoundly thankful to General George and his wife, Patty, for their many years of sacrifice and devotion to those who serve,” the staff said in an X post. “As they graduate from this distinguished chapter of service and look toward the future, we wish them both continued happiness and success in all that lies ahead.”General George is a West Point graduate. The military academy thanked him for helping shape future Army leaders. “Gen. Randy George, shared experience-driven guidance with cadets preparing to lead,” the academy said in an X post. The general previously served as the senior military assistant to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during the Biden administrationFar-right activist Laura Loomer hinted that the firing was coming last week in an X post. Ms. Loomer said Mr. Hegseth was “seriously considering” replacing General George.Mr. Hegseth also fired General David Hodne and Major General William Green, who oversaw the Army’s Chaplain Corps, the Associated Press reported, citing an unnamed official.The firings come as the American military is involved in a month-long war with Iran. The American military presence in the Middle East has surged with elements of the 82nd Airborne division the latest to deploy.The current vice chief of staff of the Army, General Christopher LaNeve, will take over as the acting Army chief of staff. General LaNeve was formerly Mr. Hegseth’s senior military aide.Mr. Hegseth had congratulated General LaNeve when he was confirmed as the vice chief in January. “General LaNeve — a generational leader — will help ensure the Army revives the warrior ethos, rebuilds for the modern battlefield, and deters our enemies around the world,” Mr. Hegseth said in an X post. “General LaNeve is a battle-tested leader with decades of operational experience and will accelerate excellence at every echelon.”More than a dozen senior military officers have been fired since President Trump returned to the White House.Mr. Trump fired Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Linda Fagan a day after he was sworn in. He fired Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr. as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff a month later. Air Force General Dan “Razin” Caine is now in the role.Mr. Hegseth announced the firings of Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Lisa Franchetti and Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Jim Slife on the same day as General Brown’s removal.Last August, Mr. Hegseth fired the head of the Pentagon’s intelligence agency’s chief, Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse. Senator Mark Warner criticized General Kruse’s removal. “The firing of yet another senior national security official underscores the Trump administration’s dangerous habit of treating intelligence as a loyalty test rather than a safeguard for our country,” Mr. Warner said in a statement.

Hegseth Fires Army’s Top Uniformed Officer Amid Leadership Shakeup

Hegseth Fires Army’s Top Uniformed Officer Amid Leadership Shakeup

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