By Colonel Bill Connor US Army (Ret)
On Friday, Feb 21, the Trump administration did what the left is calling a “purge” of military leadership. As
reported in the Military Times “President Donald Trump on Friday evening fired Chairman of the Joint Chiefs CQ
Brown, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti and Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Jim Slife. Defense
Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a statement that Trump plans to nominate retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan
Caine…… as the nation’s next chairman of the Joint Chiefs…. Hegseth also requested nominations for the Army,
Navy and Air Force judge advocates general, indicating they too have been fired.”
Trump and Hegseth praised the service of those being replaced, though made clear that Lt. General Dan “Rasin”
Caine was the warrior leader needed at this. The expected hyperbolic warnings came fast and furious, with the
ironic charge that Trump was engaged in “politicization” of the military.
https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2025/02/trump-military-purge-washington-week/681805/.
The reality is that Trump’s actions are in keeping with history and necessary to the military reform now needed.
First, replacing top flag officers is nothing new in American history. Under FDR, General George C. Marshall fired
countless senior officers through his “plucking board” after the German invasion of Poland, prior to US
involvement World War II. The Plucking Board was set up by Chief of Staff of the Army Marshall and headed by
his processor General Malin Craig and consisted of six retired officers. Those removed had one year to retire.
More recently, President Barack Obama engaged in what those on the right considered a purge with
replacement of senior officers. Multiple replacements of the commanders in Afghanistan, multiple senior naval
officers, the head of DNI, Lt. General Flynn and many others.
This is the prerogative of the President as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces as the Constitution allows.
In the case of General CQ Brown, the record was replete with reasons to doubt Brown would implement the
meritocratic warfighting vision and direction of the new administration. Following the death of George Floyd
and ensuing civil unrest, General CQ Brown published a video to the military and America appearing to support
the protests. He gave personal anecdotes of alleged disparate treatment throughout his Air Force career,
justifying the passions of the movement.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wD-KPL7J7c8
This was seen by many as inappropriately political. Then, as Air Force Chief of Staff, Brown set diversity goals
for officer accessions, including drastically reducing the number of white male applications to substantially
increase the percentages of women and minorities. This memo included requirements that subordinates
provide updates on this diversity Initiative.
https://www.af.mil/Portals/1/documents/2022SAF/Officer_Source_of_Commission_Applicant_Pool_Goals_m
emo.pdf
Brown also sought to drastically reduce the percentage of white pilots in favor of diversification. Brown was
Chief of Staff through the Biden years involving the “extremism standdown”, botched Afghanistan withdrawal,
vaccine mandates and expulsion of non-complying servicemembers. Brown was the Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs under Biden as the military appeared to put emphasis on DEI and LGBTQ+ ideology over warfighting.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had written in his book, published before the election, that Trump should
first fire CQ Brown to reform.
Renowned author and former Department of the Air Force Military Historian, Forrest L. Marion, wrote about
“Why” the Trump administration needs to boldly replace of senior military leadership like FDR and
Marshall: “Why? Simply this: since the Pentagon began mandating leftist, racist Critical Race Theory (CRT)-based
ideological indoctrination under the term DEI and, in the process, diverting precious resources from legitimate
combat readiness in favor of utopian foolishness, no U.S. senior military leader is known to have done what Air
Force chief of staff Gen. Ron Fogleman did a generation ago. In 1997, Fogleman – universally admired and
respected by those who know him – resigned on principle due to the scapegoating of an Air Force one-star who
was blamed for the Khobar Towers attack in 1996. Twenty-five years later, a safe estimate is that near-zero
general/flag officers resigned on principle when the Biden Pentagon implemented its morale-lowering and
combat readiness-degrading initiatives within the now-dwindling ranks. Sadly, dozens of examples could be
brought forward which demonstrate similar ideological indoctrination of the armed forces, directly or indirectly.
One telling case, however, occurred in May 2021 when Secretary Austin fired a lieutenant colonel who dared to
challenge the department’s CRT/DEI-based mandates. Prior to investigating, Austin relieved the officer on
grounds of participating in ‘prohibited partisan political activity. One writer at the Center for the American Way
of Life observes rightly, ‘A military consumed by politics and identity threatens the very integrity of our republic
Every senior officer who failed to push back in some way has proven complicit in the degrading of U.S. military
combat readiness and morale. Each one who remained silent contributed to the ongoing recruiting crisis fueled
by the Pentagon’s ideologically-driven contempt toward white males, who – like it or not – historically sustain
the vast majority of U.S. combat losses during hostilities.
https://www.realcleardefense.com/articles/2024/09/26/a_serious_pentagon_must_hold_a_plucking_board_
1060999.html
The Trump administration is laser focused on reforming the military back to a warfighting meritocracy. The
military I was commissioned in 1990 was led by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Colin Powell, who was dedicated
to the warfighting meritocracy. Powell happened to be black, but that meant little to him or us. We were all one
warfighting team. It’s time to get that back.
Attorney Bill Connor
BILL CONNOR LAW FIRM, LLC
1408 RUSSELL STREET, SUITE 11, ORANGEBURG SC 29115
P 803-937-5571 | F 803-937-6647
