Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth asked Gen. Randy George, the U.S. Army’s top officer, to step down from his position and immediately retire, according to a Pentagon official.
George had served as the chief of staff of the Army since 2023. Hegseth wanted someone who could better implement his and President Donald Trump’s vision in the Army, according to CBS News. George’s retirement was also reported by Reuters. The official confirmed to USA TODAY the accuracy of CBS’ report.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity. The Army referred USA TODAY to Hegseth’s office.
Top Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell confirmed George’s immediate retirement on X. The Pentagon “is grateful for General George’s decades of service to our nation. We wish him well in his retirement,” he wrote.
George’s removal comes as the U.S. military is engaged in a war with Iran and with a growing military presence, including elements of the Army, in the Middle East.
It also comes after Hegseth said in a social media post that an Army investigation into helicopter pilots who flew by the home of pro-Trump musician Kid Rock would be shut down.
“Thank you @KidRock. @USArmy pilots suspension LIFTED. No punishment. No investigation. Carry on, patriots,” he wrote on March 31.
Hegseth has fired numerous senior military officers and generals, many of them female or Black, leading some critics to question whether their race or gender contributed to their firing. The New York Times reported in late March that he had blocked the promotion of two Black and two female Army officers to be one-star generals.
Hegseth also fired several of his own senior advisers last year, accusing them of leaking information to the media.
George has more than four decades of military service. He was commissioned as an infantry officer from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1988 and completed multiple deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq.