Pentagon orders sweeping cuts of DOD advisory group members

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has directed all members of key Pentagon advisory boards be removed, according to a recent memo.

“To support the new strategic direction and policy priorities of the Department,” Hegseth wrote, “we require fresh thinking to drive bold changes.”

The secretary said the move was informed by a recently concluded 45-day review that was commissioned in March.

The order applies to any advisory group subject to that review -- meaning any advisory board, panel or committee whose members are not appointed by the president or Congress.

DOD advisory committee sponsors have until today to notify members “that their service has concluded,” Hegseth said. They will also recommend members to their committees for his review and approval within 30 days.

There is a caveat -- Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg “may retain individual members on a case-by-case basis upon determination that the member is required for uninterrupted committee operations necessary for national security reasons,” the memo states.

The Pentagon has not provided additional information requested regarding the retention of any board members.

It’s the latest in a string of tit-for-tat Pentagon advisory committee shakeups dating back to the waning days of the first Trump administration.

Late 2020 saw many members of the Defense Business Board and Defense Policy Board removed, and replaced with individuals close to President Trump and the White House.

Then-Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin responded in early 2021 with a “zero-based review” of more than 40 DOD advisory boards and committees, which included effectively purging the groups of their members.