*Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is facing allegations that he has interfered with military promotions, reportedly blocking or delaying advancement for more than a dozen Black and female senior officers across all four branches. According to nine U.S. officials familiar with the situation, decisions appear to be influenced by race, gender, or ties to the previous administration.
“There is not a single service that has been immune to this level of involvement by Hegseth,” one official said, NBC News reports.
The reported interference spans every branch. In the Marine Corps, three officers — two women and a Black man — were reportedly passed over despite having no disciplinary issues and full support from leadership. In the Army, four names, including two women and two Black officers, were missing from the promotion list when it reached the Senate. A pending Navy list for officers in line for one-star admiral rank has reportedly remained on Hegseth’s desk for over a month, while some Air Force promotions have also stalled.
Officials say Hegseth cited factors such as prior support for COVID vaccine or mask mandates, ties to DEI programs, and association with former Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley, a political adversary of former President Trump.
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“I think there is not consistency being applied to the standards” for promotions, one official said. All affected officers had no open investigations. “If there are no open allegations or investigations, what was the reason they were removed from the list?” one official added. “They have all deployed and done their jobs, and all are combat-tested.”
The situation escalated when Hegseth fired Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George, whose term was not set to expire until 2027. George had sought to discuss the stalled promotions but was denied a meeting.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell dismissed the reports, saying, “This story is full of fake news from anonymous sources who have no idea what they’re talking about and are far removed from actual decision-makers within the Pentagon. Under Secretary Hegseth, military promotions are given to those who have earned them. Meritocracy, which reigns in this Department, is apolitical and unbiased.”
A retired senior officer warned, unexplained interference “will certainly cast a shadow across our officer corps that everything they have said, done and written about during their careers could be politicized in a career-ending manner with the stroke of a pen.”
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