CQ Brown Warns Pentagon Political Purges Undermine Military Merit and Discipline

What was said

"I don't have all the facts on some of these, but having had to deal with situations of unauthorized flybys as a commander, having sat on promotion boards, reviewed results from promotion boards, I know they're fair based on merit. And if what I'm hearing is being reported is true, it is very concerning because it does started to get order and discipline and ensuring that people that are all given a fair opportunity. No one wants to be advantaged or disadvantaged based on their background."

At an Aspen Institute panel, General Brown directly criticized Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for overturning military discipline decisions and allegedly removing officers from promotion lists based on identity rather than merit. Brown expressed alarm that recent Pentagon actions including allowing unauthorized military flyovers for entertainers and reversing accountability measures erode good order and discipline. He warned these departures from merit-based systems had never occurred before and threaten institutional integrity.