Hegseth’s chief of employees shifts to new position amid Pentagon upheaval
Secretary of Protection Pete Hegseth’s chief of employees is transferring to a brand new position on the Pentagon, a senior protection official informed CBS Information — the newest staffing shift after days of upheaval, after a number of high Hegseth aides had been fired late final week.
Chief of employees Joe Kasper will now work on the Division of Protection as a particular authorities worker dealing with “particular initiatives,” the official mentioned, including, “Secretary Hegseth is grateful for his continued management and work to advance the America First agenda.”
Kasper’s impending departure from the chief of employees position was first reported by Politico.
The Pentagon confronted a staffing shakeup final week. No less than two officers — Hegseth’s senior adviser Dan Caldwell and deputy chief of employees Dan Selnick — had been fired as a leak investigation ordered by Kasper was underway, CBS Information reported Friday. A 3rd official, deputy protection secretary chief of employees Colin Carroll, was positioned on depart as a part of the identical leak probe.
Caldwell, Selnick and Carroll mentioned they had been “extremely dissatisfied by the style through which our service on the Division of Protection ended” in a joint assertion shared on X Saturday. And the three mentioned they “nonetheless haven’t been informed what precisely we had been investigated for, if there may be nonetheless an lively investigation, or if there was even an actual investigation of ‘leaks’ to start with.”
CBS Information additionally reported Sunday that Hegseth shared details about airstrikes in Yemen final month in a bunch chat on the Sign messaging app that included his spouse, brother and private lawyer. Hegseth additionally posted particulars on the Yemen strikes in a extensively publicized Sign chat that inadvertently included the editor of The Atlantic alongside high administration officers.
In response, Hegseth claimed the media had used “nameless sources from disgruntled, former staff, after which they attempt to slash and burn folks, and damage their popularity.” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell mentioned no categorised info was shared within the chat.
In public, President Trump has stood by the protection secretary, telling reporters Monday Hegseth is “doing a terrific job” and denying any dysfunction on the Pentagon.
