By Free Republic | Created at 2024-11-14 23:37:47 | Updated at 2024-11-22 19:51:02
1 week ago
Trump’s team said mulling mass firing of Pentagon officers who criticized him
Times if Israel ^ | 11/14/24 | By PHIL STEWART and IDREES ALI
Posted on 11/14/2024 3:07:08 PM PST by Uncle Miltie
Members of US President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team are drawing up a list of military officers to be fired, potentially including the Joint Chiefs of Staff, two sources said, in what would be an unprecedented shakeup at the Pentagon.
The planning for the firings is at an early stage after the former US president’s November 5 election victory and could change as Trump’s administration takes shape, said the sources, who are familiar with the Trump transition and requested anonymity to speak candidly about the plans.
One of the sources questioned the feasibility of a mass firing at the Pentagon.
It was also unclear if Trump himself would endorse the plan, although in the past he has railed extensively against defense leaders who have criticized him. Trump has also spoken during the campaign of firing “woke” generals and those responsible for the troubled 2021 pullout from Afghanistan.
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The second source said the incoming administration would likely focus on US military officers seen as connected to Mark Milley, Trump’s former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Milley was quoted in the book “War” by Bob Woodward, which was published last month, calling the president-elect “fascist to the core,” and Trump’s allies have targeted him for perceived disloyalty.
“Every single person that was elevated and appointed by Milley will be gone,” the second source said. “There’s a very detailed list of everybody that was affiliated with Milley. And they will all be gone.”
The Joint Chiefs of Staff include the highest-ranking officers in the US military and comprise the heads of the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, National Guard and Space Force.
The disclosure of plans to fire senior leaders of the US armed forces came a day after Trump picked as his defense secretary Pete Hegseth, a Fox News commentator and Army veteran who has signaled a willingness to clean house at the Pentagon.
“The next president of the United States needs to radically overhaul Pentagon senior leadership to make us ready to defend our nation and defeat our enemies. Lots of people need to be fired,” Hegseth said in his 2024 book “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free.”
Then-US president Donald Trump appears on Fox & Friends with co-host Pete Hegseth during a Wounded Warrior Project Soldier Ride event at the White House in Washington, April 6, 2017. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
It is unclear if Hegseth’s lack of management experience could complicate his Senate confirmation, and if a more traditional alternative for the position would carry out such sweeping dismissals.
General Brown to be among the first fired
Hegseth has also taken aim at Milley’s successor, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, asking whether he would have gotten the job if he were not Black.
“Was it because of his skin color? Or his skill? We’ll never know, but always doubt — which on its face seems unfair to CQ. But since he has made the race card one of his biggest calling cards, it doesn’t really much matter,” he wrote.
The first source familiar with the transition planning said Brown would be among the many officers to leave.
“The chiefs of the Joint Chiefs and all the vice chiefs will be fired immediately,” the source said, noting that this was still early planning.
Some current and former US officials have played down the possibility of such a major shakeup, saying it would be unnecessary and disruptive at a time of global turmoil with wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East.
The first source said that it would be difficult bureaucratically to fire and replace a large swath of senior US military officials, suggesting the planning could be bluster and posturing by Trump allies.
But the second source suggested the Trump camp believed the Joint Chiefs of Staff needed to shrink due to perceived bureaucratic overreach.
Such cuts could be endured in an organization the scale of the US military, the source said.
“These people are not irreplaceable. They are very replaceable. And then the other thing too is there is no shortage of people that will step up,” the source said.
“In World War II, we were very rapidly appointing people in their 30s or people competent to be generals. And you know what? We won the war.”
TOPICS: Extended News; Government; War
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DO IT!
1 posted on 11/14/2024 3:07:08 PM PST by Uncle Miltie
To: Uncle Miltie
Elections have consequences.
2 posted on 11/14/2024 3:08:36 PM PST by Lazamataz (The BEST birthday present I ever got WAS DONALD TRUMP WINNING IN 2024!!!)
To: Uncle Miltie
3 posted on 11/14/2024 3:10:19 PM PST by sheik yerbouty ( Make America and the world a jihad free zone!)
To: Uncle Miltie
4 posted on 11/14/2024 3:10:32 PM PST by HYPOCRACY (Democracy is dead. Long live the Republic!)
To: Uncle Miltie
Hegseth has also taken aim at Milley’s successor, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, asking whether he would have gotten the job if he were not Black.
“Was it because of his skin color? Or his skill? We’ll never know, but always doubt — which on its face seems unfair to CQ. But since he has made the race card one of his biggest calling cards, it doesn’t really much matter,” he wrote.
interesting what the times of isreal reports.
5 posted on 11/14/2024 3:12:03 PM PST by PeterPrinciple (Thinking Caps are no longer being issued but there must be a warehouse full of them somewhere.)
To: Uncle Miltie
A better plan might be to get one...or a couple...respected former generals/admirals and ask their opinions on which top officers are more focused on winning wars than on politics...DEI...etc.
6 posted on 11/14/2024 3:12:53 PM PST by Gay State Conservative (Import The Third World,Become The Third World)
To: Uncle Miltie
Just leave it to the new Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth. I’m confident he can clean the table.
7 posted on 11/14/2024 3:13:07 PM PST by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021? )
To: PeterPrinciple
Simple solution. Make it a triangle.
8 posted on 11/14/2024 3:13:26 PM PST by DIRTYSECRET
To: Uncle Miltie
“unprecedented shakeup at the Pentagon”
Since Obama, anyways.
9 posted on 11/14/2024 3:13:40 PM PST by rightwingcrazy (;-,)
To: Uncle Miltie
That’s very compassionate of him. What they did is completely against the UCMG and they could be court martialed for it. It’s nice of him just to dismiss them.
10 posted on 11/14/2024 3:13:44 PM PST by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2024... RETURN OF THE JEDI..)
Comment #11 Removed by Moderator
To: Uncle Miltie
If they publicly said anything negatively about Trump, they should be gone.
Same if they insulted Biden publicly while serving.
That has always been grounds for dismissal.
To: Uncle Miltie
To all the Deep State and DEI generals:
13 posted on 11/14/2024 3:15:45 PM PST by Leaning Right (It’s morning in America. Again.)
To: Uncle Miltie
Lovin’ this.....
“CJCS Charlie Brown” is a clown, and an AA stooge.
He proclaimed that 43% of the officer corps would be minorities,
(DEI) just like him.
No mention of merit, just quotas.
What a knob...
14 posted on 11/14/2024 3:17:03 PM PST by AFret. (.)
To: Uncle Miltie
15 posted on 11/14/2024 3:17:18 PM PST by Oldeconomybuyer (The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money)
To: Uncle Miltie
What a ridiculously slanted headline. That’s the angle most of the media are taking now. He is looking to fire people because they “criticized him”, or because he “doesn’t like them.” They never mention the real, entirely justified reasons.
16 posted on 11/14/2024 3:18:16 PM PST by noiseman (The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.)
To: Uncle Miltie
Contempt toward officials under Article 88 of the UCMJ takes place when a commissioned officer of the United States Armed Forces uses contemptuous words against officials of any branch of the U.S. government or any state government.
These jackwagons were fully aware of this and they did it anyway. Charge them and court martial the bastards.
Then fire them for good measure.
17 posted on 11/14/2024 3:18:38 PM PST by bigbob (Yes. We ARE going back!)
To: Uncle Miltie
Obama terminated 197 General Officers for the same reason. The Alt Left Dinosaur media said not a word.
18 posted on 11/14/2024 3:18:45 PM PST by MNJohnnie (Don't blame me, my congressman is MTG!)
To: Uncle Miltie
I believe the military would be a lot more efficient if they got rid of 50% of the Flag officers. They build empires taking personnel and funding from warfighters for useless crap (e.g., DEI).
19 posted on 11/14/2024 3:20:06 PM PST by where's_the_Outrage? (Drain the Swamp. Build the Wall.)
To: A Navy Vet
Pete will lock some heels.
They need to be forced out.
20 posted on 11/14/2024 3:20:30 PM PST by laplata (They want each crisis to take the greatest toll possible.)
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