The transition team for President-elect Trump is working on an executive order that would speed up the firing of top military brass if signed, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
The draft executive order would set up a “warrior board” of retired generals and noncommissioned officers given power to review three- and four-star officers and to recommend anyone “lacking in requisite leadership qualities,” according to the document, reviewed by the Journal.
If signed by Trump once he takes office, it could allow the quick removal of generals and admirals and purge the ranks of those the future commander-in-chief takes issue with for whatever reason.
Such a move could gut the Defense Department and create a fearful atmosphere among top military officers, given Trump’s past promise to rid the Pentagon of so-called “woke generals” – those seen as promoting diversity in the ranks.
The order could also effectively bypass the Pentagon’s regular promotion system, as those identified for removal by the warrior board would be relayed to the White House and then retired at their current rank within 30 days, according to the Journal.
As president and commander-in-chief of the U.S. Armed Forces, Trump has the discretion to fire any officer. But an established board would do the heavy lifting and root out officials en masse.
The draft order appears hazy on details and said reviews would focus “on leadership capability, strategic readiness, and commitment to military excellence,” though did not specify how officers would show if they meet such standards.
A transition official told the Journal that the draft order came from one of several outside policy groups working with the transition team and is under review.
The Hill has sent the Trump transition team a request for comment as to the draft executive order but received no response as of press time.
And a Trump-Vance Transition spokeswoman would not comment to the Journal on the order but said “the American people re-elected President Trump by a resounding margin giving him a mandate to implement the promises he made on the campaign trail. He will deliver.”
Should such a board be established, it would follow Trump’s calls for ridding the military of what he sees as unloyal generals, those involved in highly criticized events — such as the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan — or those that helped advance more liberal policies under the Biden administration.
Trump has long fumed over military officials that he views as not properly toeing the line, including former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Mark Milley.
Trump has accused Milley of going behind his back in the final days of his administration when the retired four-star general talked to Chinese counterparts to reassure Beijing after Trump lost reelection in 2020.
“This is an act so egregious that, in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH! A war between China and the United States could have been the result of this treasonous act,” Trump wrote in September 2023.
While in the White House the first time, Trump reportedly said he wanted “the kind of generals that Hitler had. . . . People who were totally loyal to him, that follow orders.”
And while on the campaign trail in October, Trump floated the idea of a task force to monitor the “woke generals.”
