Pentagon Feuds Boil Over: Inside Hegseth’s Friday Firings
Internal power struggles within Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s inner circle erupted into public view Friday as four senior staff members departed their positions amid an intensifying investigation into unauthorized leaks. The dramatic shakeup, which included three outright terminations and one reassignment, has exposed deep divisions within the Pentagon’s leadership and raised questions about the department’s stability during a time of global security challenges.
The personnel changes came after three of the officials had been placed on administrative leave earlier in the week as part of a sweeping leak investigation. By Friday evening, senior adviser Dan Caldwell, deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick, and Colin Carroll, chief of staff to the deputy secretary of defense, were officially terminated. Additionally, Hegseth’s chief of staff Joe Kasper, who had ironically initiated the leak investigation in March, will be moving to another position within the department.
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A Tale of Two Narratives
Two competing explanations have emerged for the high-profile departures. The Pentagon’s official position ties the terminations directly to an investigation into unauthorized disclosures of sensitive information. However, sources from within the department paint a more complex picture involving personal rivalries and factional disputes.
According to Fox News, the three terminated employees had been at odds with Kasper for months. “The trio were united, according to one defense official with knowledge of the situation, in the fact that Kasper had a ‘deep vendetta’ against them,” Fox News reported. The same source claimed the three had raised concerns about Kasper’s leadership to Hegseth, and that Kasper believed they were trying to get him fired.
These tensions reportedly escalated to “shouting matches in the front office” as the rival factions battled for influence over the department’s direction. The dysfunctional dynamic suggests that personal animosities may have played a role in how the leak investigation unfolded.
However, another Pentagon official disputed this characterization to Fox News, insisting: “This is not about interpersonal conflict. There is evidence of leaking. This is about unauthorized disclosures, up to and including classified information.”
Questions About Investigative Process
The manner in which the leak investigation has been conducted has raised eyebrows among department veterans. Multiple defense officials told Fox News that the three terminated employees were never informed of what specific leaks they were accused of facilitating, were not read their rights, and received no guidance on who they could speak with during their administrative leave. They also reportedly were not asked to surrender their cellphones as part of the investigation.
This approach appears to contrast with the aggressive stance outlined in Kasper’s March directive, which according to CBS News called for “a complete record” of leaks and authorized the use of polygraph tests if necessary to identify the sources.
Legal experts note that while being placed on administrative leave is not technically considered a disciplinary action, the public nature of the investigation has implications for those involved. “They’ve been humiliated in the media to some extent. However, this happens every day in the federal government,” Sean Timmons, a legal expert in military and employment law, told Fox News.
“Complete Meltdown” Threatens Department Function
The turmoil appears to be taking a toll on the Pentagon’s operations and morale. One senior defense official offered a blunt assessment to Mediaite: “There is a complete meltdown in the building, and this is really reflecting on the secretary’s leadership. Pete Hegseth has surrounded himself with some people who don’t have his interests at heart.”
Another official predicted that “there probably will be more chaos,” suggesting the current staff shakeup may be just the beginning of a larger departmental overhaul. This assessment raises concerns about the Pentagon’s ability to maintain operational effectiveness amid the leadership turmoil.
“The front office has some really first-rate uniformed military staff, but there’s only so much they can pick up in an organization that big,” a former Trump administration official told Mediaite. “That kind of dysfunction compounds.”
Legal Challenges on the Horizon
The Pentagon’s staff drama may be heading to court. Two sources told Mediaite that Carroll and Selnick intend to sue for wrongful termination, potentially dragging the department into protracted legal battles that could further expose internal dysfunction.
While political appointees like the terminated officials can be fired at will, they may have grounds for legal action if they believe the terminations were improperly handled or if their security clearances are revoked without due process.
The leak investigation that precipitated these terminations reportedly covers several significant disclosures, including information about hypothetical military plans for the Panama Canal, U.S. carrier movements in the Middle East, intelligence operations concerning Ukraine, and details of a Pentagon briefing with Elon Musk.
Hegseth himself was at the center of a leak controversy last month when he shared information about planned airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen in a Signal group chat that inadvertently included a journalist after National Security Advisor Michael Waltz mistakenly added Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to the conversation.
As the Pentagon attempts to manage this crisis, questions remain about whether Secretary Hegseth can restore order to his leadership team and regain control of the narrative surrounding his department’s operations. The department’s statement to CBS News that “no final senior staffing changes have been decided” suggests the situation remains fluid, with potentially more developments to come.
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