Trump administration fires raft of top military officers in unprecedented purge

• President Trump fired the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Friday night.
• His public removal coincided with the defense secretary's firing of five other top officers.
• Several lawmakers, including military veterans, expressed concern amid the shakeup.

The White House ousted the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., which was followed by a string of firings in the Pentagon's most senior ranks that alarmed lawmakers.

In a press release posted Friday night, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also removed the chief of naval operations and the Air Force vice chief of staff, Adm. Lisa Franchetti and Gen. James Slife, respectively, as well as the top military lawyers for the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

The removals of confirmed leaders deepen the turmoil at the Pentagon as it faces deep cuts to its civilian workforce and budget shifts that Trump officials say are to align with the new administration's priorities. Nearly 5,400 probationary employees within the DoD may face job termination next week, part of a larger slew of cuts that could total around 55,000 civilian military employees.

In his Truth Social announcement, Trump did not provide a reason for the removal of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who serves as the president's top military advisor, nor did he explain the move to replace Brown with a retired general.

Brown is a fighter pilot, and only the second African American to hold the chairman position. After the police killing of George Floyd in 2020, Brown spoke out publicly about his personal experiences facing racial discrimination as an airman. Before his most recent role, Brown was Chief of Staff of the US Air Force, making him the first African-American service chief.

Trump said that he would nominate retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan Caine to take on the role of chairman. This is a position that would need to be confirmed by the GOP-led Senate.

Brown wasn't the only trailblazing military officer among the leaders terminated Friday. Franchetti was the first woman to lead the Navy and the first-ever female military leader to be part of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Prior to his confirmation, Hegseth had called for the removal of both Brown and Franchetti.

She is the most recent female leader to be sacked as the new administration shakes up the government. Shortly after taking office, Trump officials relieved Coast Guard leader Adm. Linda F. Fagan, the first woman to lead a branch of the US armed forces.

Hegseth's press release on the DoD leadership changes also asked for nominations for the Judge Advocates General for the Army, Navy and Air Force, positions responsible for deciding if orders military commanders receive are lawful.

That move sounds particularly concerning to some lawmakers, who pointed out that high-ranking military lawyers interpret, among other things, whether orders are lawful.

"Under President Trump, we are putting in place new leadership that will focus our military on its core mission of deterring, fighting and winning wars," the press release read.

Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee Senator Jack Reed said in a statement Friday night that the nature of the dismissals appear to be part of a broader, premediated campaign by Trump and Hegseth to purge senior officers for political reasons.

"What Trump and Hegseth are doing is un-American, unpatriotic," wrote Rep. Seth Moulton, a Democrat from Massachusetts and a former Marine officer. "It's [the] definition of politicizing our military, and we should expect to see loyalty oaths (not to the Constitution) and worse coming soon."