A three-star general left the Pentagon earlier this month due to “sustained tensions” with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Caine.
Lt. Gen. Joe McGee retired early from his post on the Joint Staff’s Strategy, Plans, and Policy team, CNN reported, citing anonymous sources. No date was provided for his resignation, but the report indicated tensions had been brewing between McGee and the Pentagon’s top leadership for a while.
McGee reportedly disagreed with Hegseth and Caine over the Russia-Ukraine war and the recent airstrikes in the Caribbean region, where boats allegedly run by drug cartels have been targeted and destroyed by the United States military since early September.
The general’s stalled promotion has also been a source of tension. McGee was said to be nominated by former President Joe Biden to serve as director of the Joint Staff, a three-star officer who assists the Joint Chiefs of Staff. However, he was never renominated by President Donald Trump.
The Pentagon confirmed McGee’s exit, while briefly criticizing CNN’s reporting about the circumstances behind his departure.
“General McGee is retiring, and the War Department is grateful for his service,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement provided to the Washington Examiner. “CNN’s claims regarding his retirement are 100% fake news.”
The Washington Examiner also contacted the Joint Chiefs of Staff for comment.
In his former role, McGee advised Caine on military strategies involving risk assessment and crisis contingency planning.
There have been reports of the Trump administration pushing out other senior military officials, including former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman CQ Brown and retired Air Force General Tim Haugh, because the administration believed the officials were not aligned with Hegseth’s agenda.
Navy Adm. Alvin Holsey, who headed U.S. Southern Command, announced his retirement earlier this month after reportedly disagreeing with Pentagon leadership over the Caribbean drug strikes. He will retire in December, just one year into his job.
HEGSETH PLEDGES TO RESHAPE WAR DEPARTMENT AFTER ‘DECADES OF DECAY’
During his address to top military leaders late last month, Hegseth talked about enforcing merit-based standards across the department and eliminating its diversity, equity, and inclusion policies. He also boasted about firing multiple senior officials since taking office in January.
“I have fired a number of senior officers since taking over — the previous chairman, other members of the Joint Chiefs, combatant commanders, and other commanders,” Hegseth said at a Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia. “The rationale for me has been straightforward. It’s nearly impossible to change a culture with the same people who helped create or even benefited from that culture.”
