Five former defense secretaries have criticized President Donald Trump in a letter for firing the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other senior military officers. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
In the letter, they alleged that Trump’s actions undermined "our all-volunteer force and weaken our national security" and they accused the president of trying to turn the apolitical U.S. military into an instrument of partisan politics and using firings, which extend to the top Army, Navy and Air Force lawyers, to do so.
All defense secretaries but one, James Mattis, served under Democratic administrations.
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Trump announced the firings late on Friday, but his administration has yet to clarify in any detail what caused the unprecedented shakeup, which also included the dismissal of the head of the Navy, Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the first female officer to lead a military service.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown was let go not even have way into his four-year term under the Trump administration. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
The letter cautioned that the actions at the Pentagon could deter Americans from choosing a life in the military, should their careers be judged through the lens of partisan politics. It could also have a chilling effect on speaking "truth to power," they cautioned.
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"We write to urge the U.S. Congress to hold Mr. Trump to account for these reckless actions and to exercise fully its Constitutional oversight responsibilities," they wrote.
Fox News’ Liz Friden and Reuters contributed to this report.
Bradford Betz is a Fox News Digital breaking reporter covering crime, political issues, and much more.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/former-defense-secretaries-condemn-trumps-firing-senior-military-officials-scathing-letter