U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has ordered hundreds of the U.S. military’s generals and admirals to gather on short notice—and without a stated reason—at Quantico Marine Corps base in Virginia next week, “sowing confusion and alarm after the Trump administration’s firing of numerous senior leaders this year,” the Washington Post reported yesterday afternoon. The order is directed at all ranks that occupy command positions, from brigadier general/rear admiral (lower half) to four star ranks—the order exempts officers in staff positions—said to number about 800 people. They are also to bring their top enlisted advisors.
In a statement Sept. 25, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell affirmed that Hegseth “will be addressing his senior military leaders early next week,” but he offered no additional details.
None of the people who spoke with the Post could recall a defense secretary ever ordering so many of the military’s generals and admirals to assemble like this. Several said it raised security concerns. “People are very concerned. They have no idea what it means,” one person said. Others expressed frustration that even many commanders stationed overseas will be required to attend Hegseth’s impromptu summit, with some questioning the wisdom of doing so. “It will make the commands just diminished if something pops up,” a defense official said.
