Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has asked the Army’s top uniformed officer, Gen. Randy George, to step down, the Pentagon said Thursday, as the United States wages a war against Iran.
A Pentagon official confirmed to Scripps News that George has been asked to take early retirement from the post of Army chief of staff, which he has held since August 2023.
"General Randy A. George will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said.
STATEMENT:
— Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellASW) April 2, 2026
General Randy A. George will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately. The Department of War is grateful for General George’s decades of service to our nation. We wish him well in his retirement.
The ouster of George is just the latest of more than a dozen firings of top generals and admirals by Hegseth since he first took office last year.
George served as senior military assistant to former Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin from 2021-2022.
President Joe Biden nominated George as Army chief of staff and the Senate confirmed him in 2023. The position is typically a four-year term, which means George may otherwise have held the post until 2027.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
