Dem
47
GOP
53
It certainly seems like Secretary of Defense War Pete Hegseth was trying to sneak this news in under the radar, since he
made the announcement shortly after the Pam Bondi news went public. He
announced that
he is cashiering three of the highest-ranking generals in the U.S. Army: Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George, Gen.
David Hodne and Maj. Gen. William Green Jr.
By virtue of his posting, George was actually the top general in the entire U.S. Army. He was nominated for the job by Joe Biden, and theoretically would have served until 2027. Hodney was serving as Army's Transformation and Training Command, while Green was leading the Army's Chaplain Corps. According to both Hegseth and Chief Pentagon Spokesperson Sean Parnell, the three generals will be replaced by commanders who share the administration's "more aggressive vision for the Army."
It is not uncommon for top generals to be replaced in the middle of a war. Douglas MacArthur was famously removed from command during the Korean War, for example. George McClellan was removed from command during the Civil War, to give another example. But that happens when a war is going poorly. It does not happen when a war's already been won, and is about to end—claims Trump has made many times about the Iran War, including in his speech Wednesday night. Put another way, the administration's words do not line up with its actions.
It's not too hard to guess what was "wrong" with these generals (all of them highly decorated and highly respected in the military community, by the way, particularly George). Undoubtedly, they were not enthusiastic about the Iran War, and communicated that to Hegseth and Trump. In particular, a little reading between the lines suggests that Hegseth and Trump really want a ground invasion and George told them it was not a good idea. It's also likely that Green, in some way, objected to the violent and sectarian version of evangelical Christianity that Hegseth has been using his position to foist on DoD personnel.
Presumably, Hegseth will find three more compliant lackeys. Most generals don't want to have anything to do with a war they know is a loser, but there are always a few Mike Flynns or William Westmorelands out there, willing to take on a problematic job because of their politics or their desire for glory. But the real news here is that all signs seem to be pointing to a ground invasion, which would be disastrous on numerous levels. (Z)