Hegseth directs 20% cut to top military leadership positions

By TARA COPP Associated Press WASHINGTON AP Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday directed the operational duty military to shed of its four-star general officers as the Trump administration moves forward with deep cuts that it says will promote efficiency but that critics worry could effect in a more politicized force Hegseth also explained the National Guard to shed of its top positions and directed the military to cut an additional of its general and flag officers across the force which could include any one-star or above or officer of equivalent Navy rank The cuts are on top of more than a half-dozen top general officers that President Donald Trump or Hegseth have fired since January including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen CQ Brown Jr They also have fired the only two women serving as four-star officers as well as a disproportionate number of other senior female officers In the earlier rounds of firing Hegseth revealed the eliminations were a reflection of the president wanting the right people around him to execute the national measure approach we want to take Related Articles Trump has threatened a tariff on movies made outside the US Here s what we know Trump administration says Harvard will receive no new grants until it meets White House demands Trump squad s million bet on old vaccine equipment puzzles scientists Trump s meme coin business racks up fees as buyers jump at the chance for access to the president Detained Tufts apprentice seeking transfer says asthma attacks worsened in custody As Pentagon chief Hegseth has touted his efforts to root out any programs or leadership that endorses diversity in the ranks tried to terminate transgender amenity members and begun sweeping changes to enforce a uniform fitness standard for combat positions In a memo announcing the cuts Monday Hegseth reported they would remove redundant force structure to optimize and streamline leadership He revealed the aim was to free the military from unnecessary bureaucratic layers Adding to the turmoil in the Pentagon Hegseth in latest weeks has dismissed or transferred multiple close advisers tightly narrowing his inner circle He also has been facing questions from both Democrats and Republicans about his handling of sensitive information and use of the Signal messaging app There are about general officers in the military but only of those are four-star general or flag officers The Army has the largest number of general officers with including eight four-star generals The number of general officer positions in the military is set by law Members of Congress were not provided with the advance notification they normally would receive on the cuts but were given a very brief alert this afternoon according to a congressional staffer who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details not made inhabitants The cuts were first informed by CNN The Pentagon is under pressure to slash spending and personnel as part of the broader federal executive cuts pushed by Trump and ally Elon Musk s Department of Executive Efficiency Hegseth last week ordered a sweeping transformation of the Army to build a leaner more lethal force including merging or closing headquarters dumping outdated vehicles and aircraft slashing as multiple as headquarters staff in the Pentagon and shifting personnel to units in the field Also last week the Army validated that there will be a military parade on Trump s birthday in June as part of the celebration around the function s th birthday Functionaries say it will cost tens of millions of dollars Lolita C Baldor contributed to this summary