Hegseth Fires Navy Chief Of Staff

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth fired Navy Chief of Staff Jon Harrison on Friday, the Department of War said.

Harrison was appointed in January to lead as the Navy’s chief of staff, working alongside Navy Secretary John Phelan to implement organizational changes under Hegseth’s new leadership. A War Department official confirmed Harrison’s removal to the Daily Caller News Foundation, thanking the former chief of staff for his service.

“He will no longer serve as Chief of Staff to the Secretary of the Navy,” the statement read. “We are grateful for his service to the Department.”

According to two defense officials and a former defense official, sources told Politico that Harrison’s firing was “sudden,” coming after he and Phelan worked to implement sweeping changes in policy and budgeting offices.

The removal comes just days after retired Navy Captain and former Republican Senate candidate in Virginia Hung Cao was confirmed as Undersecretary of the Navy on Wednesday. (Read more from “Hegseth Fires Navy Chief Of Staff” HERE)

Editor’s Note: It appears that Harrison, a Trump appointee with no prior military experience who took the role in January 2025, ran into trouble with Hung Cao, a Navy veteran, who had just been confirmed by the Senate as the new Under Secretary of the Navy earlier last week. An anonymous Pentagon official described the firing as a response to Harrison’s efforts to curb the new undersecretary’s influence.

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