U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, condemned the Trump administration’s recent firing of senior military leaders and called on Republicans to speak out against what she called “an incredibly reckless decision that dangerously politicizes our military and undermines our national security, military readiness and the rule of law.”
Last week, President Donald Trump fired six top military officials: Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti; Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Slife; and the judge advocates general for the Army, Navy, and Air Force.
“These senior leaders have faithfully and apolitically served our country for decades, providing exactly what the Constitution expects of them — their best military advice to civilian leadership,” Hirono said in a statement released on Saturday. “There is no reasonable justification for these terminations. Instead, the dismissals reveal the President’s true intention: installing a group of ‘yes men’ with fealty to him and not the Constitution or the American people. It’s also revealing that General Brown and Admiral Franchetti, both fired, are the only person of color and woman, respectively, serving on the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”
Brown, the highest-ranking military officer in the country, was singled out early by then-nominee for Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth for his alleged support of “woke” initiatives.
Trump, who accused the fired officers of promoting a DEI agenda at the expense of core military priorities, said he intends to replace Brown with Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan Caine.
According to the Associated Press, President Trump thanked Brown in announcing his dismissal on social media: “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.”
In her statement on Saturday, Hirono said she was troubled by the unprecedented sacking of the judge advocates general.
"These nonpartisan attorneys serve continuously in both Republican and Democratic administrations, without fear or favor,” she said. “Our military leaders rely on them to provide their best legal advice, regardless of party. It’s clear these individuals were singled out to ensure their successors understood that only the president’s expansive and legally dubious interpretations of military law would be tolerated. Ultimately, these dismissals will have a chilling effect on the willingness of uniformed attorneys to speak truth to power, undermining the rule of law.”
Hirono urged colleagues on both sides of the aisle to actively resist the president’s action.
"My Republican colleagues say they care about the military and are willing to spend billions more to increase lethality but shamefully put their heads in the sand as the president threatens the foundation of our military and our democracy with these unprecedented firings,” Hirono said. “Now is the time for all of my colleagues, Republican and Democrat, to prove they really care about the military by pushing back against this brazenly political attack.
“Preserving the integrity of our armed forces is not a partisan issue,” she continued. “Every member of Congress took an oath to support the Constitution and that oath compels each of us to push back against the President’s dangerous attempt to politicize our military.”
Michael Tsai covers local and state politics for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at michael.tsai@charter.com.
Associated Press contributed to this story.
