Trump’s “Warrior Board”

The Trump team wants a “warrior board” with the power to purge senior military officers. The panel of retired senior military personnel could fast-track the ouster of generals and admirals found to be “lacking in requisite leadership qualities,” a draft order says.

• Purpose: The board would assess senior military officers to ensure they align with Trump’s vision for the military, emphasizing traditional military values over what he perceives as political correctness or wokeness.
• Composition: The board would consist of retired senior military personnel, providing an external review process outside of the Pentagon’s regular promotion and evaluation system.

Trump Draft Executive Order Would Create Board to Purge Generals

If an executive order is enacted, it could fast-track removal of admirals

By Vivian Salama, Nancy A. Youssef and Lara Seligman, Wa;ll Street Journal, Nov. 12, 2024″:

WASHINGTON—The Trump transition team is considering a draft executive order that establishes a “warrior board” of retired senior military personnel with the power to review three- and four-star officers and to recommend removals of any deemed unfit for leadership.

If Donald Trump approves the order, it could fast-track the removal of generals and admirals found to be “lacking in requisite leadership qualities,” according to a draft of the order reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. But it could also create a chilling effect on top military officers, given the president-elect’s past vow to fire “woke generals,” referring to officers seen as promoting diversity in the ranks at the expense of military readiness.

As commander in chief, Trump can fire any officer at will, but an outside board whose members he appoints would bypass the Pentagon’s regular promotion system, signaling across the military that he intends to purge a number of generals and admirals.

The draft order says it aims to establish a review that focuses “on leadership capability, strategic readiness, and commitment to military excellence.” The draft doesn’t specify what officers need to do or present to show if they meet those standards. The draft order originated with one of several outside policy groups collaborating with the transition team, and is one of numerous executive orders under review by Trump’s team, a transition official said.

The warrior board would be made up of retired generals and noncommissioned officers, who would send their recommendations to the president. Those identified for removal would be retired at their current rank within 30 days.

Karoline Leavitt, the Trump-Vance Transition spokeswoman, declined to comment on this draft executive order, but said “the American people re-elected President Trump by a resounding margin giving him a mandate to implement the promises he made on the campaign trail. He will deliver.”

The establishment of the board would be in line with Trump’s calls for purging what he views as failed generals, including those involved in the chaotic 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, according to people familiar with the policy discussions. Trump has said he would ask all generals involved in the withdrawal to resign by “noon on Inauguration Day.”

The president-elect previewed the move during a campaign event in October, telling an audience that he would create a task force to monitor the “woke generals” and get rid of diversity training in the military.

“They’re gone,” Trump said of those generals, without naming specific officers.

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