Bipartisan team of lawmakers seeks Hegseth's justifications for possible military firings

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers wants Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to explain why the Trump administration is considering firing senior military leaders, which critics have likened to a political "purge."

In a letter sent today, Reps. Seth Moulton (D-MA), Jason Crow (D-CO), Jared Golden (D-ME), Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) and Don Bacon (R-NE) ask Hegseth for “clear, transparent and apolitical criteria” for the possible firings.

“As your administration contemplates removing numerous General and Flag Officers, it is vital that we have transparency on the criteria and process used to evaluate these officers,” the lawmakers wrote. “There are valid reasons to remove a General or Flag Officer, but there must be clear, transparent and apolitical criteria and processes associated with any such dismissal.”

The letter follows media reports that a list of possible staff terminations is circulating among Republicans on Capitol Hill that includes Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti.

The Pentagon has declined to discuss the reports of possible staff terminations.

Prior to being confirmed as defense secretary, Hegseth, a former Fox News host and Army National Guard veteran, had stated publicly that Brown should be fired over his perceived championing of “woke” diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

In their letter to Hegseth, the lawmakers acknowledge that all senior military leaders serve at the pleasure of the president.

But, they wrote, the “General and Flag Officers of this country are patriots who have dedicated their lives to the defense of the United States.”

“Most, if not all, of the current three- and four-star General and Flag officers were General and Flag officers under the first Trump administration and all have served honorably under many administrations of both parties,” they wrote. “Each of them has been confirmed by the United States Senate repeatedly over the course of their careers.”