Here are the military and civilian leaders who've been fired, forced out or resigned since Hegseth became defense secretary
- At least 20 generals, admirals, and civilian defense leaders have been fired or resigned since Pete Hegseth became defense secretary, with departures including the military's highest-ranking officers often with little official explanation.
- Before his nomination, Hegseth warned that any leader involved in "DEI woke s***" must leave, a stance that drove the removal of figures like Vice Admiral Shoshana Chatfield, singled out for a 2015 presentation on gender equality.
- President Trump abruptly fired Air Force General Charles Q. Brown as chairman of the Joint Chiefs in February 2025, 16 months into his four-year term; Hegseth then pushed out Navy Admiral Lisa Franchetti and Air Force General James Slife, saying both had "distinguished careers."
- Tensions escalated into August, with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll resigning on August 31, while Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse was ousted from the Defense Intelligence Agency and Vice Admiral Nancy Lacore was relieved of her duties earlier that month.
- An internal leak investigation led by Joe Kasper, Hegseth's chief of staff, resulted in the April 2025 firing of aides Dan Caldwell and Darrin Sellnick, who questioned the probe's validity in a post on X.
40 Articles
40 Articles
Congratulated by Trump, Pete Hegseth promotes ‘cleaning' on the high military ladder, despite difficulties in ending war on Iran
Ex-military officials raise alarm over leadership departures from the Pentagon
Former U.S. military officials are raising alarms about the exodus of experienced leaders from the Pentagon, against the backdrop of the conflict with Iran and concerns over depleted stockpiles.
'Unprecedented' chaos in Trump’s Pentagon exposed: defense expert
The latest in a string of high-profile Pentagon departures is much worse than it seems, one defense expert wrote for MS NOW, as it further exposes the "unprecedented uncertainty" consuming the military under President Donald Trump.Kevin Baron is a national security analyst and journalist with two decades of experience covering warzones and Pentagon affairs. On Wednesday, he published a new piece for MS NOW breaking down the recent resignation of…
Ukraine, Iran, Venezuela: The US Department of Defense is strongly challenged in several conflicts, but the Pentagon under Minister Pete Hegseth threatens to sink into chaos.
At Least 25 Top Pentagon Officials Have Departed
“With Army Secretary Dan Driscoll’s resignation announcement this week, the number of top Pentagon officials to depart under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth climbed to more than two dozen,” MS NOW reports. “At least 25 military and civilian leaders have been fired or forced out or have retired early since Hegseth’s tenure as defense secretary began […]
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