Hegseth looking to cut a slew of senior military personnel in latest Pentagon purge: report
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will use his State of the Force address Wednesday to announce he is cutting 20 percent of senior military positions in his latest purge at the Pentagon, according to a report.
The secretary’s speech – coming a year on from his first table-setting lecture to top brass at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia – is expected to lay out his priorities for the next 12 months and include his reduction plans for the Army, Navy and Air Force, a September memo seen by Fox News indicates.
The memo directs Pentagon officials to identify which among the roughly 800 general and flag officer positions can be downgraded as part of an emphasis on creating a culture of “less generals, more GIs.”
Hegseth’s new target doubles the 10 percent reduction in senior roles he ordered last year and is expected to be implemented by January 1, 2027.
The downsizing also comes after he moved in May 2025 to strip back four-star active-duty positions and general officer positions in the National Guard by 20 percent.
Announcing that decision, the secretary explained: “This is not a slash-and-burn exercise meant to punish high-ranking officers.
“This has been a deliberative process, working with the Joint Chiefs of Staff with one goal: maximizing strategic readiness and operational effectiveness by making prudent reductions.”
The Independent has reached out to the Pentagon for comment on Hegseth’s expected announcement.
Since taking charge of the U.S. military, the former Fox News host has overseen the removal of swathes of top officials while pursuing culture war vendettas against DEI appointments and “woke” values and insisting on the need to nurture a high-testosterone “warfighter” mentality among the troops.
Gen. Charles Q Brown Jr, Adm. Lisa Franchetti, Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield, Gen. Randy George, Gen. Christopher Donahue and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll are just some of the casualties of the upheaval.
The exodus has provoked disquiet even among congressional Republicans, with Maine Sen. Susan Collins, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, saying of Hegseth this week: “One of my concerns, which unfortunately has been borne out, was that he would fire a lot of very capable military officials, and he has done that.
“He has blocked promotions for some of our most capable military officers. The number of women and Black people that had been struck from the list was awful.”
She and several Senate GOP colleagues suggested the secretary could struggle to get a mammoth $1.5 trillion budget request for 2027 approved as a result of a lack of confidence in his leadership, particularly over the ongoing Iran war, and because of his alleged failure to cultivate relationships on Capitol Hill.
Hegseth’s priorities will be on display at Wednesday’s address where he is set to be accompanied by troops who meet strict grooming requirements.
An email sent out earlier this month and first reported by The Wall Street Journal seeking troops to be seen with the secretary who meet the Army’s preferred waist-to-height ratio and fitness tests and have “impeccable grooming and uniform standards (no exception).”
