Trump removes Brown, names new Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman

President Trump has fired Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr., a four-star pilot, and named Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine to be the country’s next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“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,” Trump said in a Friday Truth Social post. “He is a fine gentleman and an outstanding leader, and I wish a great future for him and his family.”

Brown was only the second African American to hold the post.

Trump in the statement lauded Caine, Brown's replacement, as an “accomplished” pilot and “warfighter with significant interagency and special operations experience.”

Trump referenced Caine during his speech at the FII PRIORITY Summit in Miami on Wednesday, praising him as a “real general, not a television general.”

Caine will need to be confirmed by the Senate.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signaled in his Friday statement that both Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Jim Slife and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa M. Franchetti, the first woman to be on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have been fired.

“I am also requesting nominations for the positions of Chief of Naval Operations and Air Force Vice Chief of Staff,” Hegseth said in a Friday statement. “The incumbents in these important roles, Admiral Lisa Franchetti and General James Slife, respectively, have had distinguished careers. We thank them for their service and dedication to our country.”

U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan was ousted from her position one day into Trump’s second term.

Hegseth also said that he is firing judge advocates general for the Navy, Army and Air Force. He did not say why.

The Secretary of Defense previously said that Brown should be fired along with all other generals “involved” with diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts.

“First of all, you’ve got to fire the chairman of the Joint Chiefs,” Hegseth said during a November podcast appearance. “But any general that was involved — general, admiral, whatever — that was involved in any of the DEI woke s‑‑‑ has got to go. Either you’re in for warfighting, and that’s it. That’s the only litmus test we care about.”

Hegseth said during his first day at the Pentagon that he is “standing with” Brown and looked “forward to working with him.” On Friday, the former Fox News host stated that Brown, who became chairman in October 2023, “served with distinction in a career spanning four decades of honorable service. I have come to know him as a thoughtful adviser and salute him for his distinguished service to our country.”

The firings come as the Pentagon looks to cut more than 5,000 civilian employees who are on probation status at the start of next week in an effort to help gut upwards of eight percent of the military’s civilian workforce, Darin Selnick, the acting Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, said Friday.

A day earlier, Hegseth said the Pentagon has “put out a hiring freeze” on all workers as it undertakes an evaluation to come up with “a performance-based standard.”

"Under President Trump, we are putting in place new leadership that will focus our military on its core mission of deterring, fighting and winning wars,” Hegseth said on Friday.

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