Pentagon turmoil deepens: Top Hegseth aide leaves post [View all]

Source: Politico

EXCLUSIVE
Pentagon turmoil deepens: Top Hegseth aide leaves post

Other Defense Department officials were placed on leave earlier this week.


The Pentagon is seen on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023, in Washington. Carolyn Kaster/AP

By DANIEL LIPPMAN and JACK DETSCH
04/18/2025 05:27 PM EDT

Joe Kasper, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's chief of staff will leave his role in the coming days for a new position at the agency, according to a senior administration official, amid a week of turmoil for the Pentagon.

Senior adviser Dan Caldwell, Hegseth deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick and Colin Carroll, the chief of staff to Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg, were placed on leave this week in an ongoing leak probe. All three were terminated on Friday, according to three people familiar with the matter, who, like others, were granted anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue.

The latest incidents add to the Pentagon's broader upheaval in recent months, including fallout from Hegseth's release of sensitive information in a Signal chat with other national security leaders and a controversial department visit by Elon Musk.
Caldwell, Carroll, and Selnick and Kasper declined to comment. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request of comment.

Kasper had requested an investigation into Pentagon leaks in March, which included military operational plans for the Panama Canal, a second carrier headed to the Red Sea, Musk's visit and a pause in the collection of intelligence for Ukraine.

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Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/18/defense-secretary-chief-of-staff-joe-kasper-departure-00299508