WASHINGTON (AP) – Three staunch loyalists to the president have been named to top defense jobs.
They include the department’s top policy official, James Anderson, who resigned and is being replaced by retired Brigadier General Anthony Tata, and former Fox commentator whose nomination for the post earlier this summer foundered after CNN’s KFile reported his numerous past Islamophobic and offensive remarks.
The abrupt changes sent reverberations through the Pentagon as nervous civilian and military personnel waited for the next shoe to drop. And they fueled worries of a wider effort to drum out anyone considered not loyal enough to Trump.
Fears are swirling in Washington over abrupt changes to the Pentagon’s top brass as Trump continues to fight results of last week’s election.
The moves came just a day after President Donald Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper.
FOX’s Lucas Tomlinson has more:
Meantime, Tuesday’s actions led one Congressman Adam Smith-D/WA, Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee to say the quick turnover at the Pentagon could be “devastating” for national security.
In a statement posted to Twitter, Smith said:
“It is hard to overstate just how dangerous high-level turnover at the Department of Defense is during a period of presidential transition.
If this is the beginning of a trend — the President either firing or forcing out national security professionals in order to replace them with people perceived as more loyal to him — then the next 70 days will be precarious at best and downright dangerous at worst.”
As the @DeptofDefense continues to see high-level turnover, Chairman @RepAdamSmith warns of the dangers of gutting the Pentagon during a period of presidential transition.
Read his full statement here: https://t.co/OfEwb9ziOu pic.twitter.com/mWd8jxdbVx
— House Armed Services (@HASCDemocrats) November 10, 2020
At least one top military official is quoted as saying, “This is scary, it’s very unsettling. These are dictator moves,” according to CNN.
(Copyright 2020 WBAP/KLIF 24/7 News. This report contains material from the Fox Radio News, Politico and CNN.)
