According to reports, the new administration under President-elect Donald Trump is making arrangements for the removal of senior military officials who apparently made diversity, equity, and inclusion programs more important than being ready for combat. A report from Breitbart, citing sources close to the matter, says that the Trump team is putting together a list of officers in consideration and an executive order is allegedly being written to create a panel that would identify who needs to go.
Plans aimed at Overhauling the Military Target DEI Advocates
The report says that the Trump transition team is optimistic about simplifying the management of the military with its emphasis on combat readiness and national security. “This is for real. This [executive order] has made the cut,” one source said, bearing in mind that the revisions and consultations with incoming Pentagon officials are still ongoing. The effort seems to be assisted by retired military officers who have been vocal about their opposition to DEI programs within the armed forces.
Combat Preparedness and Readiness should be Prioritized over DEI
The purges reportedly target military officers who, by pressing for DEI initiatives, were supposedly diminishing military readiness. According to Samuel Shoemate, a chief warrant officer 2 who has retired, “They want to lop off the head of the Marxist snake. And so that’s the primary criteria that I’m trying to focus on.” This makes the whole initiative succeed in shifting military priorities back towards combat readiness and national security.
Focus on Milley-Appointed Officers
One of the sources in the report claims that all the officers whom one can be compelled out are those elevated and appointed by General Mark Milley, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under the Trump administration. “Every single person that was elevated and appointed by Milley will be gone. There’s a very detailed list of everybody that was affiliated with Milley.”. And they will all be gone, said the source. Not left in a position of power, The Joint Chiefs of Staff comprise a bulk of the highest military officers-in this reported probable shake-up.
More Replacements for Trump’s New Defense Secretary Choice
The reported firings happen shortly after Trump named Fox News commentator and veteran Pete Hegseth as his nominee for defense secretary. Army advocate for an overhaul of the military, Hegseth has called in the past for a “radical” restructuring of senior leadership at the Pentagon to better ready forces. In his book The War on Warriors, Hegseth wrote, “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.”.
Those targeted might include the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Air Force General C Q Brown who is replacing Milley as the chairman. His fate also could well be sealed, another source said. Details are unavailable yet, but it appears the message is one of downsizing what many consider to be a bloated military leadership.
Potential Probs and Issues Regarding Feasibility
Several from within the Trump transition team are looking for such changes while others inside the same team wonder if this is too extensive a change, especially at the height of such going global conflicts. It may well be quite a necessity, one feels, as it holds up the military machinery. However, sources close to the matter claimed that the present leadership views it to be inefficient and considers that there are enough replacements to fill the shoes of the former ones.
Focus on Combat Readiness at the Expense of DEI
The moves indicate that Trump is aiming to restore the military to being combat ready. The DEI programs have been criticized as antithetical to military readiness and national security. Such practices would put the military leadership through a radical overhaul.
No Clarity on Forthcoming Military Purge
Still, it is anyone’s guess whether all these plans will see the light of day with President Trump. While there are some who have stepped out vocally in support, it remains to be seen if the presidential brushstrokes of his personal endorsement would give impetus to these military purges or become an important element of his administration’s defense strategy.
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