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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday fired the Army鈥檚 top officer, Gen. Randy George, a move that is prompting concerns about the politicization of America鈥檚 military, particularly during a U.S. war in the Middle East.

General George became the latest of more than a dozen high-ranking officers in the military dismissed in President Donald Trump鈥檚 second term. Two other generals, including the Army鈥檚 top chaplain, were also fired Thursday.

In a social media post, Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell thanked Mr. George for his 鈥渄ecades of service鈥欌�� and said that the general鈥檚 retirement would be effective immediately. 鈥淲e wish him well,鈥� he said.

As the Army chief of staff, General George worked closely with Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll, a Trump administration appointee with whom Mr. Hegseth has clashed.

Appointed by President Joe Biden in 2023, Mr. George was a decorated veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He was asked to step down amid reports that he had disagreed with Mr. Hegseth鈥檚 decision to block the promotion of several top Army colonels to one-star general, including Black and female officers. Service chiefs generally serve for four years.

The timing of these latest firings, against the backdrop of speculation about whether there will be a U.S. ground invasion of Iran, has also raised questions about how Mr. Hegseth handles military advice that runs counter to his wishes on the war front.

In October last year, Mr. Hegseth forced out Mr. George鈥檚 deputy, Gen. James Mingus, from his job as the Army鈥檚 vice chief of staff as part of a broader purge of generals deemed 鈥渨oke鈥� or not aligned with the administration鈥檚 vision. The Trump administration has also fired top lawyers for the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

Analysts say the firings could undermine the American tradition of military leadership giving frank advice to political leaders, even as they salute and carry out orders ultimately issued by the civilians who, by constitutional design, are in charge.

In part to uphold this revered tradition, some current and former U.S. military officials are urging troops still rising through the ranks 鈥� including those who now say they are tempted to leave due to a loss of faith in the institution 鈥� to stay right where they are.

鈥淒on鈥檛 throw in the towel,鈥� retired Gen. C.Q. Brown said Thursday night upon hearing about the firings, just minutes before giving a talk at Harvard University on the topic of 鈥淟eadership in Challenging Times.鈥�

Service and sackings

Mr. Brown was the first Black Air Force chief of staff. He was hired during President Trump鈥檚 first term, then was fired from his job as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff last year during the president鈥檚 second term.

It was part of a spate of sackings that included Adm. Linda Fagan, the commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, and Adm. Lisa Franchetti, chief of naval operations. Both were the first women to lead their respective service branches.

While hundreds of men have attained the rank of four-star general or admiral throughout America鈥檚 military history, including Admirals Fagan and Franchetti, only 10 women have done the same.

The Trump administration has also fired top lawyers in each of the military services.

The dismissals, for which the administration has often given no official reason, raise 鈥渢roubling questions about the administration鈥檚 desire to politicize the military and to remove legal constraints on the president鈥檚 power,鈥� five former U.S. secretaries of defense wrote in an last year.

One of the letter鈥檚 authors was retired Gen. Jim Mattis, appointed by President Trump to be defense secretary during his first term.

鈥淭alented Americans may be far less likely to choose a life of military service if they believe they will be held to a political standard,鈥� warned the former defense secretaries. 鈥淭hose currently serving may grow cautious of speaking truth to power,鈥� and America鈥檚 historically high trust in the military could also 鈥渂egin to wither.鈥�

A growing gap in trust

Studies show that this is already happening. A poll from the conservative Reagan Institute in December found that overall public confidence in the U.S. military has declined sharply since the group began doing the survey. It鈥檚 now at roughly 50%, down from 70% in 2018.

The survey also found a widening partisan gap in trust since Mr. Hegseth began serving as defense secretary in 2025. While confidence among Democrats has dropped to 33%, confidence among Republican respondents has rebounded to 67%.

鈥淭he tough part here is that we have a smaller and smaller part of the population that actually knows somebody in the military,鈥� retired General Brown said in a discussion at the Harvard event. 鈥淎nd the less you know about the military, the harder it is for you to have that trust 鈥� or a small event can actually really erode that trust.鈥�

For some, one such event has been last month that Mr. Hegseth blocked the promotion of four Army officers 鈥� two Black men and two women 鈥� to one-star general from a list of roughly 35 candidates.

Only between 3% to 5% of colonels are selected for promotion to one-star, or brigadier general, in any given year.

In his talk at Harvard, Mr. Brown recalled making the controversial decision to speak out about the Black Lives Matter movement following the death of George Floyd. He said he was aware it could affect the Senate鈥檚 vote on his confirmation, scheduled for the same week. 鈥淚n my heart of hearts, I thought it was the right thing to do. And if I did not get confirmed, so be it.鈥�

He ultimately got the job in a 98-0 vote.

On Thursday, a West Point graduate, who later became one of the first women to earn a prestigious Ranger tab, asked how to maintain faith in an institution that seems to be evaluating officers based more on identity than performance.

Mr. Brown reflected on the value of service even as he recalled 鈥渉aving to represent by working twice as hard to prove the expectations and perceptions鈥� held by some of the leaders he once saluted were 鈥渋nvalid.鈥�

To this, he told her, 鈥淧rove them wrong.鈥�