Hegseth Doubles Target for Top Military Posts to 20%, but Says Cuts Are Not 'Slash-And-Burn'

US War Secretary Pete Hegseth will on Wednesday announce plans to cut by 20 per cent the number of posts reserved for generals and admirals across the armed forces, doubling the 10 per cent overall reduction he ordered last year, according to Pentagon officials and internal memos.

He is due to announce the move in his State of the Force address at Quantico, Virginia. The cuts affect senior posts in the Army, Navy, Air Force and the military's joint pool, and are due to be fully implemented by 1 January 2027.

Mr Hegseth has insisted the reductions are not aimed at individuals. Launching the first round in May 2025, he said: 'This is not a slash and burn exercise meant to punish high-ranking officers.'

He called it a 'deliberative process' developed with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, aimed at 'maximizing strategic readiness and operational effectiveness by making prudent reductions in the general and flag officer ranks'.

Posts, Not People in Hegseth Military Cuts

Pentagon officials said the directive targets billets, the posts earmarked for generals and admirals, rather than removing one in five officers currently serving in those ranks, according to War Department and Pentagon documents seen by US media.

Some billets will be downgraded rather than abolished so they can be filled by colonels and Navy captains. In a 16 September memo approving cuts to the joint pool, Mr Hegseth told officials to create O-6 requirements for the affected roles, meaning they can be held by officers one step below general or flag rank.

The 20 per cent figure applies to general and flag officer posts overall. Last year's order set that overall target at 10 per cent, but already demanded a 20 per cent cut in active-duty four-star roles and in National Guard general posts.

That earlier drive, branded 'less generals, more GIs', was presented as an effort to strip out bureaucracy and shift resources to troops closer to combat. Mr Hegseth said it would remove 'redundant force structure' and 'excess' senior posts.

Political Reaction to Hegseth Military Overhaul

Since then, Mr Hegseth has fired or or sidelined more than two dozen senior officers across the services, according to US media reports, and removed several officers from promotion lists.

The moves have unsettled some lawmakers. Susan Collins, the Republican chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said at a July hearing that the pattern was 'deeply troubling', describing those affected as 'men and women who volunteered to serve our country and swore an oath to support and defend our Constitution'.

In April, Republican congressman Austin Scott said the removal of General Randy George, the former Army chief of staff, would have a 'chilling effect' on the armed services. Mr Hegseth has argued that senior military leaders serve at the pleasure of the president.

Mr Hegseth has described the changes as an effort to streamline the military's senior ranks. Critics, including some lawmakers, have argued that the changes could reduce institutional experience and create a leadership vacuum at the top of the military.

Selected Audience for Hegseth Speech

Commands have reportedly been asked to send 'top-performing' service members who meet fitness and waist-to-height standards and maintain 'impeccable' grooming and uniform discipline, rather than a hall of four-star officers. Some are expected to join Mr Hegseth for a workout before the speech.

Last year he summoned hundreds of generals and admirals to Quantico, where he set out his expectations for senior leaders and warned those unwilling to back his reforms to step aside. The services have until 1 January 2027 to put the latest cuts into effect.