USA · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
Pete Hegseth Orders U.S. Military To Cut 20% Of Generals And Admirals
Pentagon to cut about 20% of generals and admirals across all services. Hegseth to announce 20% cut during State of the Force address at Quantico.
Whether the cuts are framed as culture-war rollbacks or congressional oversight….
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CBC
“targeting what he calls ‘woke’ culture — through a rollback of diversity programs”Read the original ↗
Federal News Network
“Reshaping the senior leadership of the world’s most powerful military is precisely the kind of decision that requires consultation with and justification to Congress.”Read the original ↗
CBC links the general cuts to ideological culture changes, while Federal News Network stresses command continuity and Congress’s oversight role.
20% cut confirmed
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed Wednesday that the U.S. military will cut 20 per cent of its generals and admirals as he made a series of announcements in what he called his "state of the force" address.
Hegseth spoke to junior officers and enlisted leaders at the Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia, and he said the reduction was "accountability and long overdue."
The Pentagon chief directed all military services to double the 10 per cent reduction he ordered last spring for roughly 800 flag and general officer positions, making it a total 20 per cent decrease to be completed by Jan. 1, 2027.
The Pentagon also said the rollout of autonomous and robotic capabilities would be overseen by a new four-star command, which Hegseth described as "the fastest peacetime shift in modern military history."
Hegseth’s announcements came as the U.S. was seven months into a war with Iran with no clear end in sight, and the speech was delivered at Quantico for the second year in a row.
How the cuts work
Federal News Network said the reduction would remove about 170 active-duty generals and admirals from chains of command, leaving around 680 in charge of key military organizations.F
Federal News Network also said some billets would be demoted to be filled by colonels and Navy captains, while others would be cut altogether.F
The Pentagon official confirmed Tuesday that the directive would cut 20% of positions held by generals and admirals by Jan. 1, and Federal News Network said Hegseth was expected to unveil the changes at his State of the Force address in Quantico, Va., on Wednesday.F
Federal News Network reported that federal law authorizes a total of 857 active-duty general and admiral billets across the department, and it said public personnel data showed 851 of those jobs were filled as of July 31.F
Federal News Network added that Hegseth approved plans earlier this month to reduce the number of general and flag officer billets across the Army, Navy and Air Force, as well as those in joint roles.F
Congressional backlash
Senator Jack Reed, a Democrat and the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the plan "should alarm every American" and argued that Congress has a fundamental role in matters involving the size and structure of the senior officer corps.
“He's purging a generation of great leaders of the military, and it's going to take a generation to recover from it.”
Reed warned that "Efficiency and streamlining in the military are worthy goals" but said the senior leadership of the world’s most powerful military requires consultation with and justification to Congress.
Reed also said "Article I of the Constitution assigns Congress the power to raise and support the armed forces and to make rules for their government," and he asked Hegseth to justify the reduction to lawmakers in writing before making any changes.
The CBC reported that Republican Sen. CMike Rounds said he wanted to understand Hegseth’s reasoning behind the decision and said, "If it's simply a matter of eliminating a very heavy top, there may be some validity to it, but I want to see it first."
The CBC also quoted Democratic Sen. CMark Kelly saying, "He's purging a generation of great leaders of the military, and it's going to take a generation to recover from it."