Pete Hegseth’s firing spree will have “untold ripple effects” and put troops’ lives at risk, according to a veteran who served under him.
The Secretary of Defense has launched an unprecedented purge of senior figures, blocking some promotions and proactively forcing others into retirement as he reimagines the military in his image.
It sparked fears that hard-earned military experience is being lost in a frenzy of politicization that could have long-term effects on the armed forces’ organizational stability and the safety of troops.
“It will have untold ripple effects through the ranks,” former U.S. Marine Corps officer Virginia Burger told the Daily Beast. “Initially, these impacts may not be the most noticeable, especially for those of us outside the military. However, as more and more respected senior leaders are either fired or depart of their own accord, it will unquestionably lead to doubts about the validity of the decisions of those at the top.”
The former captain served nine years in the corps, leaving active service in June last year. She now works as a senior defense policy analyst for the Center for Defense Information at the Project On Government Oversight.
Her words come after Army Secretary Dan Driscoll stepped down following reports that he had clashed with Hegseth.
His departure leaves the Army’s highest civilian role unfilled, which, coupled with the vacant top uniformed role of Chief of Staff following Hegseth’s ouster of General Randy George in April, leaves the Army in a leadership vacuum.
“Since it’s become so evident that Hegseth fires those that don’t comply with his demands, every decision made by those still in positions of leadership can be called into question,” Burger added.
“Are senior officers making administrative or operational decisions in the best interests of national security or troop welfare? Or are they making decisions based on what is least likely to get them fired? These concerns were just starting to arise, albeit quietly, when I left active duty in June 2025.”
Hegseth has sought to align the military with his values and politics. At a meeting with top generals at Marine training hub Quantico in September last year, he said there would be “No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses. No more climate change worship. No more division, distraction, or gender delusions. No more debris.
“As I’ve said before and will say again: we are done with that s---.”
According to the New York Times, more than half of the officers who have been affected by his purge are Black or female.
“Females and people of color have been targeted,” a Pentagon insider told the Daily Beast in April. “They have lost jobs, had promotions denied, and been demoted. Most feel unjustly treated.”
For Burger—who served as a warfighting instructor at Quantico’s The Basic School and who received a Master Instructor designation for her teaching—Hegseth’s politicization of the military is in direct contrast to what the Founding Fathers wanted for the military.
“It was the express desire of America’s founders that the military remain an apolitical institution, divorced from the partisan actions of Congress, the presidency,” she said. “This was a foundational necessity, as they did not want the military to be a tool for furthering partisan interests.
“Hegseth’s purges run counter to all of that, as he is so clearly removing those that do not align with his and Trump’s political ideology. The whole point of having career, uniformed officers is so that, at the senior ranks, they can be the experienced military experts, able to weigh in and advise the political, civilian leaders candidly and honestly, without partisan interests and biases shaping their inputs.
“Hegseth’s purge of senior leaders, presumably for their lack of alignment with his political priorities and interests, is the most targeted weakening of the military’s apolitical nature since the nation’s founding.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the Pentagon for comment.
