Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 24, 2025

Biden's defense secretary is booting all of the Pentagon's advisory board members for a fresh start after Trump's 'frenetic' post-election changes

Biden's defense secretary is booting all of the Pentagon's advisory board members for a fresh start after Trump's 'frenetic' post-election changes

The Trump administration installed loyalists like the president's former campaign manager on Pentagon advisory boards. That is now being undone.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called for an "immediate suspension" of the department's advisory committee operations as it conducts a top-down review and ordered the removal of all advisory board members by mid-February, an internal memo said.

Austin, who was nominated by President Joe Biden and confirmed by the US Senate in late January, said that the Defense Department's review was being conducted to "align with our most pressing strategic priorities and the National Defense Strategy."

"Advisory committees have and will continue to provide an important role in shaping public policy within [the Department of Defense]," Austin said in his memo to the department. "That said, our stewardship responsibilities require that we continually assess to ensure each advisory committee provides appropriate value today and in the future, as times and requirements change."

In the memo, Austin says that "conclusion of service" for all advisory board members will take place no later than Feb. 16.


News of the changes to the department's advisory committees was first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday afternoon. The latest news follows a report last week from Politico that the Pentagon had halted all appointments to the boards.

The various Pentagon advisory boards are comprised of civilians appointed by a defense secretary to provide bipartisan counsel on matters that range from business to military policy.

The intended nonpartisan goals of the committees were heavily scrutinized after acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller — who was appointed by then-President Donald Trump after he fired his defense secretary following the November election — purged the boards and installed a number of loyalists in the final weeks of the administration.

After Miller abruptly emptied out most of the Defense Policy Board, he cleared out much of the Defense Business Board. Changes to other boards then followed. He then selected loyalists like Trump's 2016 presidential campaign manager Corey Lewandowski and deputy campaign manager David Bossie to fill the vacancies.

Some of the loyal individuals the administration sought to install on the boards included people who have been surrounded by controversy.

Scott O'Grady, a retired US Air Force F-16 pilot, was appointed to the Defense Policy Board in December. The war hero promoted several conspiracy theories in support of Trump's baseless claims that the presidential election was stolen.

O'Grady recently shared a tweet saying that " suggesting that martial law is not a bad idea when there is an attempted coup against the president," according to CNN, which also reported that O'Grady shared other debunked theories about the election, insulted former military officials, and retweeted at least one pro-QAnon hashtag.

Ret. US Army Gen. Anthony Tata, who was also appointed as an advisor, previously drew criticism for his characterization of former President Barack Obama as a "terrorist leader" with "Islamic roots."

As the Trump administration quickly moved to overhaul the advisory boards, an advisor on the Defense Business Board who survived the purge resigned in protest. In his resignation letter, Steve Blank wrote that by purging advisory boards and filling them with Trump allies, the Trump administration had "put the nation's safety and security at risk."

Speaking to the press Tuesday, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters that the "frenetic activity" at the end of the Trump administration "deeply concerned" Austin and was a driving factor in his decision to clean out the boards and start over.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
BBC Demands Perplexity AI Immediately Stop Using Its Content
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
Political Turmoil Resurfaces in Belgium Amid Economic Concerns
Fed policymakers divided on timing of interest rate cuts
Trump signals imminent agreement with Harvard University
Inheritance tax referendum alarms Swiss billionaire community
Japan cancels bilateral security meeting amid US defence demands
AI skeptic Emily Bender warns that ‘the emperor has no clothes’
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
×