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Related: About this forumTrump 'prizes loyalty above all things': Reuters reporter on Trump's top military purge - MSNBC Reports
Trump selected a new Chairman for the Joint Chiefs of Staff Friday. Trump also encouraged Elon Musk to get more aggressive with cuts to the federal workforce and government spending. Reuters White House Correspondent Jeff Mason discusses these topics, House Republicans facing backlash from their constituents, Trumps spat with Maine Governor Janet Mills (D), and more. - Aired on 02/22/2025.
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Trump 'prizes loyalty above all things': Reuters reporter on Trump's top military purge - MSNBC Reports (Original Post)
Rhiannon12866
Feb 23
OP
LetMyPeopleVote
(162,809 posts)1. In Pursuit of a 'Warrior Ethos,' Hegseth Targets Military's Top Lawyers
This is one of the most scary part of Hegseth's and trump's purge of military personnel. Hegseth and trump want to remove any JAG officers who might rule that trump's orders are unlawful. This is designed to convert the military into a force loyal to trump where there will no one to stand up to any illegal orders issued by trump
https://bsky.app/profile/davidjolly.bsky.social/post/3liswwzkhwk2m
Link to tweet
Here is a link to a free article
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/us/politics/hegseth-firings-military-lawyers-jag.html?unlocked_article_code=1.zE4.Gbvm.fozhSinwG5Le&smid=tw-share
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseths decision to fire the top lawyers for the Army, Navy and Air Force represents an opening salvo in his push to remake the military into a force that is more aggressive on the battlefield and potentially less hindered by the laws of armed conflict.
Mr. Hegseth, in the Pentagon and during his meetings with troops last week in Europe, has spoken repeatedly about the need to restore a warrior ethos to a military that he insists has become soft, social-justice obsessed and more bureaucratic over the past two decades.
His decision to replace the militarys judge advocates general typically three-star military officers offers a sense of how he defines the ethos that he has vowed to instill.
The dismissals came as part of a broader push by Mr. Hegseth and President Trump, who late Friday also fired Gen. Charles Q. Brown, the countrys top military officer, as well as the first woman to lead the Navy and the vice chief of staff of the Air Force.....
The unexplained dismissals prompted widespread concern. In some ways thats even more chilling than firing the four stars, Rosa Brooks, a professor at Georgetown Law, wrote on X. Its what you do when youre planning to break the law: you get rid of any lawyers who might try to slow you down......
By comparison, the three fired judge advocates general, also known as JAGs, are far less prominent. Inside the Pentagon and on battlefields around the world, military lawyers arent decision makers. Their job is to provide independent legal advice to senior military officers so that they do not run afoul of U.S. law or the laws of armed conflict......
In his book, The War on Warriors, which was published last year, Mr. Hegseth castigates military lawyers for imposing overly restrictive rules of engagement on frontline troops, which he argues repeatedly allowed the enemy to score battlefield victories.
Mr. Hegseth derisively refers to the lawyers in the book as jagoffs. The term led Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island and a West Point graduate, to ask Mr. Hegseth at a confirmation hearing whether he could effectively lead the military after disparaging it.
Mr. Hegseth, in the Pentagon and during his meetings with troops last week in Europe, has spoken repeatedly about the need to restore a warrior ethos to a military that he insists has become soft, social-justice obsessed and more bureaucratic over the past two decades.
His decision to replace the militarys judge advocates general typically three-star military officers offers a sense of how he defines the ethos that he has vowed to instill.
The dismissals came as part of a broader push by Mr. Hegseth and President Trump, who late Friday also fired Gen. Charles Q. Brown, the countrys top military officer, as well as the first woman to lead the Navy and the vice chief of staff of the Air Force.....
The unexplained dismissals prompted widespread concern. In some ways thats even more chilling than firing the four stars, Rosa Brooks, a professor at Georgetown Law, wrote on X. Its what you do when youre planning to break the law: you get rid of any lawyers who might try to slow you down......
By comparison, the three fired judge advocates general, also known as JAGs, are far less prominent. Inside the Pentagon and on battlefields around the world, military lawyers arent decision makers. Their job is to provide independent legal advice to senior military officers so that they do not run afoul of U.S. law or the laws of armed conflict......
In his book, The War on Warriors, which was published last year, Mr. Hegseth castigates military lawyers for imposing overly restrictive rules of engagement on frontline troops, which he argues repeatedly allowed the enemy to score battlefield victories.
Mr. Hegseth derisively refers to the lawyers in the book as jagoffs. The term led Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island and a West Point graduate, to ask Mr. Hegseth at a confirmation hearing whether he could effectively lead the military after disparaging it.
trump and Hegseth want to remove anyone who might rule that trump is issuing illegal orders or violating the rules of war. trump wanted to use the military in civil unrest during his first term and was blocked by General Milley and others. trump and Hegseth are getting rid of anyone who might stop trump from doing this in the future
This is scary
LetMyPeopleVote
(162,809 posts)2. Trump purges key military leaders in another 'Friday Night Massacre'
As one Senate Democrat summarized, after the president fired several U.S. military leaders, Donald Trumps quest for power is endangering our military.
https://bsky.app/profile/cammosher.bsky.social/post/3lix3re3n3o2f
Trump purges key military leaders in another Friday Night Massacre.' Two things clear: 1) Trump's pardoning of the J6 criminals got him an armed private militia, and 2) replacing generals with his loyalists gets him generals who will order troops to fire on citizens! Agree? REPOST!
Link to tweet
On the first day of the presidents second term, for example, he fired Adm. Linda Fagan, the commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, evicting her from her home with three hours of notice. The fact that Fagan was a four-star admiral and the first woman to lead a branch of the military apparently meant very little to the Republican who ousted her.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. CQ Brown Jr. clearly hoped to avoid the same fate. He attended Trumps inauguration ceremony in the Capitol rotunda as an apparent sign of support, and after the ceremony, the general told reporters that he planned to remain at his post.
The White House had a very different kind of plan in mind. NBC News reported:
Brown wasnt alone. As part of a broader purge, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he was also firing Adm. Lisa Franchetti, chief of naval operations, and Gen. James Slife, Air Force vice chief of staff. The top lawyers for the Army, Navy and Air Force were also ousted......
As for the new chairman of the joint chiefs, the president announced plans to nominate Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan Razin Caine to replace Brown, despite the apparent fact that he lacks the requiste qualifications. The New York Times explained:
To put it mildly, congressional Democrats were not pleased with the developments. House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Rep. Adam Smith said in a statement, President Trumps latest Friday Night massacre has unleashed even more chaos with the firing of Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr. and other top U.S. military leaders via social media, further weakening our national security and national defense and disrespecting those individuals and all who wear the uniform of the United States of America.....
The editorial board of The New York Times made a related case, noting that the presidents approach destabilizes the very foundation of the institutions that have long safeguarded Americas democracy.
Trump is uprooting the pillars that serve as the foundation of our civic lives. It is difficult to say with confidence when, or if, the United States will again be the United States.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. CQ Brown Jr. clearly hoped to avoid the same fate. He attended Trumps inauguration ceremony in the Capitol rotunda as an apparent sign of support, and after the ceremony, the general told reporters that he planned to remain at his post.
The White House had a very different kind of plan in mind. NBC News reported:
President Donald Trump on Friday terminated Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman CQ Brown Jr., the countrys highest-ranking military officer, from his position. ... Brown has held the post since October 2023, after he was nominated by then-President Joe Biden. Brown, a fighter pilot, was the second Black person to serve as Joint Chiefs chairman after Army Gen. Colin Powell held the role from 1989 to 1993.
Brown wasnt alone. As part of a broader purge, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he was also firing Adm. Lisa Franchetti, chief of naval operations, and Gen. James Slife, Air Force vice chief of staff. The top lawyers for the Army, Navy and Air Force were also ousted......
As for the new chairman of the joint chiefs, the president announced plans to nominate Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan Razin Caine to replace Brown, despite the apparent fact that he lacks the requiste qualifications. The New York Times explained:
General Caine retired with three stars, as a lieutenant general. By statute, anyone picked to be the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is supposed to have served as a combatant commander, as the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff or as the top uniformed officer of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps or Space Force. It was unclear whether General Caine would need a congressional waiver; a congressional aide said the president had some latitude to choose whom he wanted and that exceptions could be made for national security reasons.
To put it mildly, congressional Democrats were not pleased with the developments. House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Rep. Adam Smith said in a statement, President Trumps latest Friday Night massacre has unleashed even more chaos with the firing of Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr. and other top U.S. military leaders via social media, further weakening our national security and national defense and disrespecting those individuals and all who wear the uniform of the United States of America.....
The editorial board of The New York Times made a related case, noting that the presidents approach destabilizes the very foundation of the institutions that have long safeguarded Americas democracy.
Trump is uprooting the pillars that serve as the foundation of our civic lives. It is difficult to say with confidence when, or if, the United States will again be the United States.
trump is trying to remake the military into a force that is loyal to him and NOT to the US Constitution