US President-elect Donald Trump’s “transition team” is drawing up a list of officers to be fired that could include members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, two sources familiar with the transition plans told Reuters.
The agency notes that it will be an “unprecedented reorganization in the Pentagon”: the Joint Chiefs of Staff includes the senior officers of the US military, as well as the heads of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and the National Army. Guard and Space Force.
“The Joint Chiefs of Staff and all Deputy Chiefs of Staff will be dismissed immediately.” — one of the interlocutors told Reuters, pointing out that this is still only preliminary planning.
The second agency source said that officials associated with former Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (2019-2023), General Marcos Milley. He has repeatedly criticized Trump and recently called him “a fascist to the core.”
“All the people who were promoted and appointed by Millie will be leaving. There is a very detailed list of everyone associated with Millie. And everyone will leave” – said the agency’s interlocutor.
Reuters’ first source questioned the wisdom of such a “massive attack” on the Pentagon, as did some current and former US officials. The agency’s interlocutor also believes that from a bureaucratic point of view it will be difficult to fire and replace a large number of senior US military officers. He suggested such plans could be “showoffs and posturing” by Trump’s allies. However, it is not clear whether the future president himself will support this plan.
A second Reuters source suggests that Trump’s team believes the Joint Chiefs of Staff need to be cut due to “perceived bureaucratic overreach” and that replacing them is not a big deal.
“We have no shortage of people who are willing to advance their careers.” – he added.
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The list of fired officers will include Milley’s successor, the current head of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, Air Force Gen. Charles Brownone of the sources said. Brown became the first black person to be promoted to the rank of general in the United States Air Force and to serve in that position.
US National Guard veteran and TV host nominated by Trump to head Pentagon Peter Hegseth In his book, he questions whether Brown would have gotten the job if he hadn’t been black. Trump himself promised during the campaign to fire “sleepy generals,” referring to officers seen as promoting “diversity” in the ranks at the expense of combat readiness.
The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that Trump’s team is working on an executive order to establish a “war council” of high-ranking retired military officers, with authority to review the cases of three- and four-star officers (lieutenant generals and generals ) and recommend the dismissal of any person found guilty who is unfit for leadership, RBC reminds.
