Trump fires Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman C.Q. Brown, chief of naval operations also out

President Trump on Friday said he is firing Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. C.Q. Brown, while Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti was also removed from her post, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a statement.

The two moves, along with other changes announced by the Pentagon on Friday evening, represent a swift, remarkable shakeup atop the U.S. military.

In a Truth Social post, Mr. Trump said he is appointing Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine for the chairman’s post following the firing of Gen. Brown, who assumed his role as the nation’s top uniformed officer in October 2023. The president cited in particular the now-retired three-star general’s role in the successful campaign during his first administration to roll back Islamic State forces who had established a broad area of control in Syria and Iraq.

“Despite being highly qualified and respected to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the previous administration, Gen. Caine was passed over for promotion by former President Biden. But not anymore!”

In a Truth Social post, Mr. Trump said he is appointing Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine for the chairman’s post following the firing of Gen. Brown, who assumed his role as the nation’s top uniformed officer in October 2023.

“I want to thank General Charles ’CQ’ Brown for his over 40 years of service to our country, including as our current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He is a fine gentleman and an outstanding leader, and I wish a great future for him and his family,” Mr. Trump said.

“Today, I am honored to announce that I am nominating Air Force Lieutenant General Dan “Razin” Caine to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,” he said “General Caine is an accomplished pilot, national security expert, successful entrepreneur, and a ‘warfighter’ with significant interagency and special operations experience.”

The president has the authority to remove a Joint Chiefs chairman. But doing so before their four-year term expires is quite rare.

Minutes after Mr. Trump’s social media post, Mr. Hegseth announced additional changes at the highest ranks of the U.S. military, including the removal of Adm. Franchetti, who assumed her role in November 2023. Mr. Hegseth said that Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Slife is also being removed from his position.

The Defense Department is also seeking new judge advocates general for the Army, Navy and Air Force, Mr. Hegseth said. Judge advocates general are the heads of the military justice system for each military service branch.

The Brown firing drew a measured response from Sen. Roger Wicker, the Mississippi Republican who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, while Democrats in both the House and Senate were far more critical of what they said was a political move to oust a distinguished military officer, a decorated F-16 pilot who became only the second Black chairman of the Joint Chiefs after President Biden elevated him to the post in 2023. But he was also a target of conservative criticism for publicly championing diversity programs at the Pentagon and initiatives such as a move to boost the number of minorities in the applicant pool for military officers.

“I thank Chairman Brown for his decades of honorable service to our nation,” Mr. Wicker said in a statement before Gen. Caine’s nomination was announced. “I am confident Secretary Hegseth and President Trump will select a qualified and capable successor for the critical position of chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”

But Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the ranking Democrat on the Senate panel, said he was “troubled” by the firings, saying they “appear to be part of a broader, premeditated campaign by President Trump and Secretary Hegseth to purge talented officers for politically charged reasons, which would undermine the professionalism of our military and send a chilling message through the ranks.”

“America has the strongest, most capable military in the world,” Mr. Reed said in a statement Friday night. “But firing uniformed leaders as a type of political loyalty test, or for reasons relating to diversity and gender that have nothing to do with performance, erodes the trust and professionalism that our servicemembers require to achieve their mission.”

In his statement, Mr. Hegseth praised the nomination of Gen. Caine.

“Gen. Caine embodies the warfighter ethos and is exactly the leader we need to meet the moment. I look forward to working with him,” the defense secretary said.

“The outgoing Chairman, Gen. Charles ‘CQ’ Brown, Jr., USAF, has served with distinction in a career spanning four decades of honorable service. I have come to know him as a thoughtful adviser and salute him for his distinguished service to our country,” Mr. Hegseth said. “Under President Trump, we are putting in place new leadership that will focus our military on its core mission of deterring, fighting and winning wars.”

The changes announced Friday night represent a stunning, rapid change in Pentagon leadership.

There had been speculation in national security circles that Gen. Brown could be fired, especially given past comments by Mr. Hegseth that were critical of him because of what critics said was his support for diversity, equity and inclusion programs inside the Defense Department.

The Trump administration is seeking to dismantle such initiatives across the federal government.