The Defense Department has been embroiled in a series of controversies in recent weeks, and though they led to some rather high-profile staff departures, key vacancies are already in the process of being filled.
As the Washington Examiner reports, the Trump Pentagon revealed on Friday the names of a group of top advisers to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, all set to remedy the turnover seen at the agency over the past days.
New advisers announced
One of the key personnel moves announced last week relates to Sean Parnell, who has been in the role of Hegseth’s assistant for public affairs, and though he will remain in that position, he will also take on duties as senior adviser to the secretary.
Among the other new additions are Patrick Weaver, Justin Fulcher, and Ricky Buria, all of whom have also been designated as senior advisors to Hegseth.
Those spots became vacant amid the departures of Darin Selnick and Dan Caldwell, whose ousters resulted from allegations that they played a role in recent leaks to the media.
Also making headlines is the status of Joe Kasper, Hegseth’s prior chief of staff who, despite assurances that he would remain at the Pentagon in a different capacity, has instead chosen to serve the Defense Department as a special government employee, a tenure that has an upper limit of 130 days per year.
Adding to the list of recent changes is the departure of John Ullyot, former Pentagon spokesperson who left earlier in April, a parting that, according to reports, was marked by rancor and suspicion.
Assurances, reactions pour in
Acting Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson downplayed suggestions of chaos in the wake of the reshuffling, saying, “Regular workforce adjustments are a feature of any highly efficient organization.”
He added, “Secretary Hegseth will continue to be proactive with personnel decisions and will work hard to ensure the Department of Defense has the right people in the right positions to execute President Trump’s agenda.”
According to Politico, however, the recent personnel shifts are anything by ordinary, declaring that “Hegseth’s closest advisers privately jockeyed for influence, creating festering distrust and gamesmanship that has rocked the world’s premier defense agency.”
A source close to the situation asserted, “There’s just a lot of tension, there’s a lot of bad blood. And there’s a lot of people trying to assert dominance in an area where it’s very hard to do without cutting somebody else.”
Alex Plitsas of the Atlantic Council suggested to the Examiner that the turmoil that seems to have gripped the Pentagon in recent weeks “presents a picture of poor judgment and a toxic work culture that’s going to continue to serve as a distraction.”
Hegseth stands firm
Hegseth, for his part, has worked to minimize perceptions of trouble at the Pentagon, telling reporters last week, “What a big surprise that a few leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russa hoax. This is what the media does.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi has also underscored the administration’s commitment to rooting out leakers, saying last week, “The Justice Department will not tolerate unauthorized disclosures that undermine President Trump’s policies, victimize government agencies, and cause harm to the American people,” but just how much of a crackdown will ultimately be required, only time will tell.
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Author: Sarah May
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