BREAKING: Hegseth Forces Out Army’s Top General, Replaces Him With His Own Former Aide
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has pushed out Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George, demanding he step down and retire immediately, according to a Pentagon official.
George, a decorated four-star general and West Point graduate who served in Desert Storm, Iraq, and Afghanistan, was confirmed by the Senate in 2023 and was only partway through what is typically a four-year term.
Taking his place as acting chief of staff will be Gen. Christopher LaNeve — who previously served as Hegseth’s personal military aide.
The Pentagon confirmed the retirement with a brief statement from chief spokesperson Sean Parnell, offering thanks for George’s decades of service. Hegseth, for his part, praised LaNeve as a “generational leader” who will help the Army “revive the warrior ethos.”
George’s removal is just the latest in a sweeping purge Hegseth has carried out since arriving at the Pentagon. He has now fired more than a dozen senior military officers, including the Air Force Vice Chief of Staff, the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, and the Chief of Naval Operations.
The firings have sent shockwaves through the ranks and raised serious questions about whether military leadership is being replaced based on merit or personal loyalty to Hegseth and Trump.
Tensions between Hegseth and Army leadership had already been simmering. In February he ordered the removal of a top Army adviser with ties to former Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley.
This week he also intervened to shut down an investigation into an Army helicopter crew that flew near Kid Rock’s Nashville home, reversing the Army’s own suspension of those service members the same day it was announced.