Pentagon Pete's Purge Chaos Spirals With Top General's Shock Exit

[orangecrush]

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth forced out another senior military official in his paranoid purge of the Pentagon’s top brass.

Four-star General Chris “C.D.” Donahue, 56, who, as the Army’s chief official in Europe and Africa, has been instrumental in helping Ukraine repel Russia’s invasion, has filed to retire and will leave his post within days.

Donahue, a special forces veteran who was famously the very last service member to depart Afghanistan during the U.S. withdrawal under Joe Biden, had once been tipped to run the entire Army but is now one of the most senior names on a lengthening list of officers shown the door under Hegseth, as The Atlantic first reported.

The general had clashed with the secretary before opting to retire, according to CBS News, which said the Army confirmed July 2 as his final day after just a year and a half leading U.S. forces in Europe and Africa. Armed forces officials thanked him for his service in a clipped statement and tapped his deputy, Major General Christopher Norrie, to fill in.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/defense-secretary-pentagon-pete-hegseths-purge-chaos-spirals-with-top-general-cd-donohues-shock-exit/

He should be testifying in front of Congress about the damage Kegsbreath is doing to the military.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

1. MaddowBlog-Army general abruptly steps down as Hegseth's Pentagon purge intensifies

Gen. Chris Donahue was described as “the latest casualty” in the defense secretary’s “purge of the military’s senior ranks.”

As Gen. Chris Donahue, commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa, joins the ranks of leaders involuntarily exiting the military, Pete Hegseth’s purge deserves to be seen as a genuine scandal.
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-06-24T13:05:47.412Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/army-general-steps-down-hegseth-pentagon-purge

In the years that followed, the general took on other high-profile duties, becoming the head of Army forces in Europe and Africa. He was also widely seen as the next chief of staff of the Army. This week, however, Donahue’s career became notable for a very different reason. The Hill reported:

Gen. Chris Donahue, commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa, submitted his paperwork to retire after a little over a year in his position, a Pentagon official told The Hill.

The Pentagon official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal military deliberations.

An Army spokesperson soon after confirmed Donahue’s departure in an official statement, thanking the general “for his leadership of U.S. Army Europe and Africa.”

While military leaders retire with some regularity, there’s reason to believe that Donahue’s decision — announced after just 18 months in his position — was not altogether voluntary. CBS News, citing multiple sources, reported that the general exited the military after a lengthy and decorated career because he had “earned the ire of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.”....

In fact, the New York Times reported in November that Hegseth had fired or sidelined dozens of officials “with little explanation,” creating “an atmosphere of anxiety and mistrust” within the department. Politico published a similar report the month before, noting that the secretary’s firings have “injected a fresh wave of fear into the Pentagon over the cost of speaking up and who might be next.”

Early last year, five former defense secretaries, including retired Gen. Jim Mattis, Donald Trump’s first defense secretary, condemned the pattern of firings as “reckless.” In a joint letter, addressed to Congress, they asked the House and Senate to hold “immediate hearings to assess the national security implications” of the dismissals.

Hegseth and the administration appear to have ignored those concerns; the purge is still going on; and GOP leaders on Capitol Hill have scheduled no such hearings.

Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, who served as a Marine officer in Iraq and now serves on the House Armed Services Committee, spoke to Politico about Hegseth’s purges, which the congressman described as politically motivated.

“That’s a recipe not just for a politicized military, but an authoritarian military,” Moulton said. “That’s the way militaries work in Russia and China and North Korea.”....

For his part, Hegseth recently defended the pattern during congressional testimony, telling lawmakers who asked about his personnel purge, “Under Barack Obama, 197 general officers were removed. So this is not something specific to this administration.”

We learned soon after that the statistic the secretary cited was entirely made up and had no basis in fact.

[orangecrush]

3. Thanks

[Ilsa]

5. Kegsbreath learned to lie like this from Trump.

Kegsbreath: “Under Barack Obama, 197 general officers were removed. So this is not something specific to this administration.”

We learned soon after that the statistic the secretary cited was entirely made up and had no basis in fact.

Kegsbreath's lessons are not serving him well, though, as most of us know that every word from either monster needs to be verified with facts.

[maxsolomon]

2. That's how you write a headline, New York Times!

Take note!

[orangecrush]

4. Thanks!

[LetMyPeopleVote]

6. Hegseth thwarted internal efforts to extend key Army general's career

Gen. Christopher Donahue, seen as a top warfighter, is the latest apparent casualty in a purge of senior military leaders by the Trump administration.

Link to tweet

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/06/24/effort-extend-army-generals-career-falls-flat-with-hegseth/

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stonewalled a behind-the-scenes effort within the Army and on Capitol Hill to extend the career of an influential general, people familiar with the matter said, leading to that officer submitting retirement paperwork and preparing to step down.

Gen. Christopher Donahue, head of U.S. Army Europe and Africa, will leave his role on July 2 after an unusually brief 18-month tenure, these people said, some speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters. Hegseth’s move has exasperated some Army officials, considering Donahue’s background as a highly regarded Special Operations commander and the secretary’s stated focus on making the military more lethal.

“He’s singularly our best warfighter at every level,” one retired senior Army officer said of Donahue.

The general’s expected departure makes him the latest apparent casualty in Hegseth’s purge of senior military leaders whom the secretary has deemed insufficiently loyal to the Trump administration or branded “woke” for their past defense of diversity initiatives.

Hegseth has fired or otherwise removed dozens of generals and admirals, often without specifying a reason. In April, the Army’s top officer, Gen. Randy George, and two other generals were forced into retirement. The administration has not yet nominated anyone for those roles.

Hegseth is a real asshole who hates real heroes