Lock the White House Watch Newsletter for free
Your Guide to Washington and the World’s 2024 US Election Means
Donald Trump fired General CQ Brown as co-director’s chairman on Friday, expelling respected Air Force leaders as the president attempted to remove military officers who supported diversity, equity and inclusion policies. .
Defense Secretary Pete Hegses also fired two other top officers. Vice President of the Air Force, Admiral Lisa Franchetti, Navy Chief. The surprise on Friday night was definitely to shake up the US military, and Trump vowed to remove what he was describing as a DEI program.
Brown, the second black general to serve as the military’s highest officer, began what appears to be a four-year term in October 2023.
“General Charles’ CQ’ Brown would like to thank him for over 40 years of service to our country.
“He is a great gentleman, an outstanding leader and wishes a great future for him and his family.”
Trump said he will nominate retired Air Force lieutenant General Razin Cain to replace Brown. The president usually chooses someone for the role of being a service chief or combat commander.
Trump met Kane when he visited Iraq in December 2018. There, during a military campaign against the Islamic State, the officer was the deputy commander of the Joint Special Operations Task Force.
In a 2024 speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference, Trump said Kane “looked better than the film actor you could get.”
Caine recently retired from the military and joined Shield Capital as a venture partner. He also served as the CIA’s top advisor on military affairs, F-16 pilots and White House associates, among other missions.
“Alongside my secretary Pete Hegses, General Cain and our army will restore peace through strength, put America first and rebuild our army,” Trump said of the true society.
Trump said he has “instructed Hegses to ask for nominations for five additional high-level positions.”
Hegseth said he and Trump are “introducing new leadership that will focus our military on the core mission of deterrence, fight and victory.”
He also said he is firing the best lawyers for the Army, Navy and Air Force.
Speculation about Brown’s future was sparked by Heggs’ nomination to make Trump the Secretary of Defense. In the November podcast appearance, the former Fox News host said:
He accused Brown of trying to implement a “wake” policy along with the other generals.
With a Senate majority, Trump was able to have a wide latitude to replace the highest officer.
Roger Wicker, Republican Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is confident that “Chief Hegses and President Trump will choose a qualified and capable successor for the important position of co-headed chair.” “He said.
“President Trump, like all presidents, deserves to choose a military adviser he knows, trusts and has a relationship with,” Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham wrote to X.
Jack Reid, a senior Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he is suffering from fire.
“This appears to be part of a broader, planned campaign by President Trump and Secretary Hegses to drive out talented officers for politically charged reasons.
The Pentagon said Friday it will fire 5,400 private workers starting next week.
The Trump administration intends to cut the Pentagon workforce between 5% and 8%, said Darryn Selnick, a senior Pentagon official. It will potentially be tens of thousands of people.
