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Donald Trump is secretly asking close advisers about whether Pete Hegseth and General Dan Caine should be fired after the midterms, even as he weighs restarting the bombing of Iran.The president has been quizzing allies on the performance of his defense secretary and his Joint Chiefs chairman, the two men who assured him the war would be wrapped up well before the midterms, according to the Atlantic. *** As Republicans face the real possibility of losing the House and Senate, Trump has concluded the Iran war would be partly to blame and trained his attention on the advisers who promised...

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired the Pentagon's top military planner as President Donald Trump considers renewed strikes on Iran following next week's midterm elections. Army Lt Gen Brett Sylvia was removed as head of strategy, plans and policy on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, after he reportedly leaked classified information about the war in Iran and the war between Russia and Ukraine.

On Friday, The New York Times reported military review boards are defying orders from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to discharge transgender service members, with Navy and Marine Corps boards frequently voting to retain them.President Donald Trump's administration created three-person separation boards with narrow instructions mandating dismissal of the estimated 4,250 transgender personnel currently serving in the military.Navy and Marine Corps boards have voted to retain trans members in nine of 12 cases. Marine Staff Sgt. Damien Contreras saw board members cross out instructions regarding "a history of cross sex hormone therapy" and circle "remains qualified."The Army and Air Force have...

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, in his latest effort to boost the role of religion in military life, announced the establishment of the Office of Religious Affairs during his Sept. 30 “State of the Force” address in Quantico, Virginia. The office will give military chaplains a “direct line” to him, he said, without “staff filters” and “bureaucratic dilution” that he characterized as an impediment to meeting service members' religious needs. “The experts, our chaplains, will finally have an advocate at the highest levels,” he said. “Policy and resources will serve the mission, not smother the mission.” He also framed it as...

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth unveiled a new military training program in partnership with several universities aimed at growing the number of “patriotic” officers. The War Department is establishing America’s Corps of Cadets Monday, partnering with several universities to expand available officer training programs, according to a memo to Pentagon leadership obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller. The program will include Louisiana State University (LSU), Liberty University, Tuskegee University, Mississippi State University (MSU), and Hillsdale College. Notably, LSU was founded as a military school in 1853, known as the Louisiana State Seminary of Learning & Military Academy. Each member school...

BREAKING: War Secretary Pete Hegseth has named @elonmusk to co-lead Project Meridian, a major new Pentagon effort to study and shape the future of warfare. Hegseth called the three co-leaders some of America’s best minds. Key details: • Co-led by Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich • Led within the department by CTO Emil Michael • Will bring together private-sector leaders and military experts • Will map the future of wars, military domains and emerging technologies • Will identify the areas America must lead and dominate • Findings are expected within 120 days • A full public rollout will...

War Secretary Pete Hegseth will announce plans to reduce by 20% the number of positions reserved for generals and admirals during his State of the Force address on Wednesday. Hegseth approved reduction plans for the Army, Navy, Air Force and the military's joint pool earlier this month, according to memos seen by Fox News Digital. The services were directed to implement the plans and complete the reductions by Jan. 1, 2027. Wednesday's address in Quantico, Va. is expected to lay out Hegseth's priorities for the military in the year ahead, with the reduction in senior leadership positions among the changes...

In direct support of President Donald J. Trump's commitment to election integrity, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has signed a memorandum directing the Department of War to mobilize a comprehensive, whole-of-government defense of our election infrastructure from foreign adversaries. Under the Secretary's directive, U.S. Cyber Command and Combat Support Agencies will prioritize and deploy advanced intelligence and cyber capabilities to identify, disrupt, and neutralize foreign interference in U.S. democratic processes. "Free and fair elections are the foundation of our republic," said Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell. "By working in lockstep with federal, state, and local partners, U.S. Cyber Command and...

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday urged U.S. service members and their families to register and vote in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections, warning that 300,000 troops did not register to cast votes two years ago. “Regardless of your home state or current duty status, you can use a standardized federal postcard to register and request a ballot, and if you’re forward deployed and your standard ballot is delayed, you can use the federal write-in absentee ballot. All of these processes are straightforward and protected by law,” Hegseth said in a nearly two-minute video released Friday, pointing the armed forces...

Rep. Thomas Massie introduced articles of impeachment against Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Tuesday for waging the Iran war without congressional approval. Massie (R-Ky.) made the surprise announcement on the House floor, accusing Hegseth of violating the War Powers Resolution of 1973, which requires congressional authorization to conduct military operations lasting longer than 90 days. “Peter Brian Hegseth, and and his capacity as Secretary of Defense has executed unlawful orders in contravention of Section 2(c) of the War Powers Resolution of 1973,” Massie declared. “Secretary of Defense Peter Hegseth, by such conduct, has demonstrated that he will remain a...

US President Donald Trump said he did not regret going to war against Iran despite the impact the conflict may have on the November US midterm elections. "I don't believe in the word 'regret.' You can always question yourself a little bit," Trump said in an interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham when asked if he regretted the Iran war due to the impact it may have on the elections. "If I had it do again, I would do exactly as I did," Trump said in the interview broadcast on Thursday on The Ingraham Angle show. Trump dismissed suggestions...

It starts with the generals and goes straight through political waste and fraud in his ballooned-up budget and ends with a demoralized force of soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines. That will be Pete Hegseth’s legacy when he’s gone, and it will take at least a decade and probably more to repair the damage he has done to our nation’s security. The New York Times reported last week that Hegseth “has fired or blocked the promotions of more than 80 generals and admirals.” The Times called it a “purge,” and that’s what it is. Ten percent of the military’s high-ranking leadership...

Hegseth traveled to Iowa in his "personal capacity," according to the Pentagon, appearing at a fundraiser for Republican Rep. Zach Nunn.

The percentage of high-ranking officer nominations going to women is currently at its lowest level in over two decades.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s blocking of promotions for high-ranking women in the military has contributed to the lowest percentage of such nominations for women in at least 25 years, according to a New York Times analysis.Eight of 201 candidates for high-ranking posts this year have been women, or 4 percent — less than half the average percentage of the past 10 years.More women could still be promoted this year. And the number of women nominated for promotion in any year is relatively...

The Fake News, as usual, is spreading false and completely unfounded rumors. I am extremely happy with the job that Pete Hegseth is doing. Everything has been extraordinary, including our attack on Venezuela, where the result was accomplished in less than one day, allowing us to bring one of the worst criminals anywhere in the World, Nicolas Maduro, to Justice! Likewise, Iran, where the country has been decimated for the purpose of NOT ALLOWING IT TO EVER HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON, is going very well! Pete is highly respected within the Military, and has made tremendous improvements, including getting rid...

The Defense Department has selected the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Virginia Tech to host a revamped fellowship program for senior military officers — the first universities approved after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth severed partnerships with top universities. The two universities will participate in the new Senior Service College Fellowship, a 10-month professional military education program that will serve as an alternative to traditional war colleges. Additional university partners will be announced at a later date, according to the department. “We are deeply honored to participate in the Senior Service College Fellowship program. The program fits well...

A contentious Senate hearing on a supplemental budget request of nearly $88 billion, largely earmarked to cover the ongoing war on Iran, revealed new figures about the war’s cost to date and the effects of the military’s Project Freedom initiative to escort commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz. The hearing did little, however, to provide concrete answers on what it would take to end the conflict. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared Tuesday before the Senate Appropriations Committee alongside the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, to defend the request, more than $67 billion...

The U.S. military on Saturday announced the first U.S. troop deaths due to direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war, saying two were killed and another was missing in an attack on a base in Jordan.They were killed Friday as the U.S. and partner forces defended against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks, a statement said. Four other service members who were medically evacuated to Jordanian hospitals were later discharged. The dead were not identified. Since the war began, 16 U.S. service members have now been killed and over 430 wounded.Minutes earlier, Iran’s supreme leader had warned...

A federal appeals court sided with President Donald Trump's administration on Thursday in a case brought by The New York Times over ​the Pentagon's press access restrictions. Press freedom advocates have criticized policy changes ‌under the Trump administration that limited journalists' access to the Pentagon, saying they suppressed freedom of speech, opens new tab. A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said ​the Pentagon's policy requiring government escorts for journalists at the Pentagon ​could stand. It overturned a decision by a judge at ⁠a lower court.

Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao took to social media to report no one from the U.S. Navy’s elite Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron will be reprimanded after a low-altitude pass went viral in Florida on Wednesday. “Flight debrief complete. No reprimands. No firings. No problem. That’s the sound of Freedom! Semper fi and Hooyah,” Cao said in a social media post that included a brief video clip of the jet zooming over the beach. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is encouraging low-altitude military flyovers. The video shows the Blue Angels flying so low over a crowded beach in Pensacola...