On May 5, 2025, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memo directing the military services to eliminate at least 20% of four-star general and admiral positions, plus 20% of general officer positions in the National Guard, and an additional 10% reduction through combatant command consolidation.
The Order
Hegseth framed the cuts as removing "redundant force structure to optimize and streamline leadership." During his confirmation hearing, Hegseth had argued: "We won World War II with seven four-star generals. Today we have 44 four-star generals."
There were approximately 40 four-star officers and 800 total general/flag officers at the time of the order.
The Structural Consequence
While individual firings remove specific circuit breakers, the billet cuts eliminate the positions themselves. A fired general can theoretically be replaced by another competent officer. An eliminated billet cannot be filled at all. This converts a personnel action (firing someone) into a structural redesign (ensuring no one holds the role).
Sen. Jack Reed (ranking member, Senate Armed Services Committee): "Tough personnel decisions should be based on facts and analysis, not arbitrary percentages. Eliminating the positions of many of our most skilled and experienced officers without sound justification would not create 'efficiency' in the military — it could cripple it."
Pattern
The billet cut came three months after the mass firings of February 22 and one month after the Haugh/Chatfield removals. The progression: fire individuals (Jan-Apr), then eliminate the positions (May), ensuring the circuit breakers cannot be reconstituted even under a future administration without congressional action.