Navy Chief of Staff Out at Pentagon in Hegseth’s Latest Shakeup

Navy Chief of Staff Jon Harrison was removed from his position on Friday, marking the latest high-profile ouster at the Pentagon under Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s ongoing shakeup of military leadership.

“Jon Harrison will no longer serve as Chief of Staff to the Secretary of the Navy,” a spokesperson for the War Department told The Post. “We are grateful for his service to the Department.”

Harrison, a Trump political appointee, was reportedly dismissed by Hegseth following a quiet but sweeping reorganization of the Navy’s internal operations. According to Politico, Harrison helped execute major changes to the Navy’s policy and budgeting offices just days before the Senate confirmed Hung Cao as the new Navy Undersecretary. Cao, a staunch Trump ally and former Republican Senate candidate in Virginia, had been expected to enter the Pentagon with substantial influence — but the shakeup may have curtailed that power.

Sources told Politico that Harrison and Secretary of the Navy John Phelan also reassigned several key aides originally slated to support Cao. The pair even planned to personally vet the incoming undersecretary’s future military aides, a move insiders say was meant to “ensure decisions came from the secretary’s office.”

The maneuver appears to have triggered Hegseth’s decision to remove Harrison.

Harrison’s firing adds to a growing list of senior leadership changes initiated by Hegseth. Since taking over the Pentagon under President Trump’s second term, Hegseth has removed former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff C.Q. Brown and former Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Lisa Franchetti. Earlier this year, he also fired senior War Department aides Dan Caldwell, Darin Selnick, and Colin Carroll amid reports of a bureaucratic power struggle driven by deep personality clashes.

In a recent address to military leaders, Hegseth defended the string of firings as necessary for reshaping a culture he views as bloated and broken.

“As you have seen and the media has obsessed over, I have fired a number of senior officers since taking over,” Hegseth said. “The previous chairman, other members of the Joint Chiefs, combatant commanders, and other commanders. The rationale for me has been straightforward: It’s nearly impossible to change a culture with the same people who helped create or even benefited from that culture, even if that culture was created by a previous president and previous secretary.”

The shakeup comes as President Trump prepares to headline a major event honoring America’s naval forces. On Sunday, Trump will host a “Salute to the Fleet” in Norfolk, Virginia, celebrating what he described as “250 years of MARITIME DOMINANCE in the United States of America.”

“Thousands of our brave Active Duty Servicemembers and Military Families will be in attendance, and I look forward to this special day with all of them,” Trump posted on Truth Social. He added that “THE SHOW MUST GO ON!” despite the ongoing federal government shutdown.

First Lady Melania Trump, Secretary Hegseth, and Secretary Phelan will all accompany the president at the Norfolk event, which is expected to draw widespread national attention.