Democrats deplore sacking of top generals
World
'Donald Trump quest for power is endangering our military'
WASHINGTON (APP) - US Democratic lawmakers and former national security leaders have denounced President Donald Trump for firing the country senior generals as part of a major shake-up at the Pentagon, alleging that the move was politically motivated, according to a media reports.
They said the dismissal of the Joint Chiefs of Staff chair, Air Force General CQ Brown, as well as five other top defence officials, would have a chilling effect on military leadership.
Donald Trump quest for power is endangering our military, Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Jack Reed, a Demota, wrote in an op-ed published by The Washington Post Sunday.
The implications for our national security cannot be overstated. A clear message is being sent to military leaders: Failure to demonstrate personal and political loyalty to Trump could result in retribution, even after decades of honourable service, said Reed, a former Army paratrooper.
Senior panel member Sen. Mazie Hirono called Trump decision incredibly reckless and one that dangerously politicizes our military and undermines our national security, military readiness, and the rule of law, ultimately making Americans less safe.
The dismissals reveal the President true intention – installing a group of yes men with fealty to him and not the Constitution or the American people, she said in a statement.
Senator Tim Kaine, also a member of the committee, said the firings came without cause out of pure pettiness.
Instead of focusing on steps to ensure our military remains the most lethal in the world in the face of global threats, including from China, President Trump and Secretary Hegseth are taking steps that make Americans less safe, he said in a statement Saturday.
And Congressman Seth Moulton, who prior to the firings led a group of five other service-members-turned-congress-members in a letter demanding Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth justify any dismissals, said Trump decision was dangerous.
Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Senator Roger Wicker, Republican, issued a terse statement on Brown firing, thanking the general for his decades of honourable service to our nation.
Brown firing, which became public while he was in Texas visiting troops on the U.S.-Mexico border, was revealed in a Trump Truth Social post Friday evening. In place of Brown, the second black American to hold highest military post, Trump will nominate venture capitalist and retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan Razin Caine, a former F-16 pilot.
Less than an hour later, Hegseth said in a statement that he is requesting nominations for replacements for Chief of Naval Operations Lisa Franchetti — the first woman to serve on the Joint Chiefs — an and Air Force Vice Chief Gen. James Slife, revealing that they too would be axed.
