Overview

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denied Lt. Gen. Douglas A. Sims II’s promotion this month after suspecting him of leaking despite no formal evidence.
• Sims was cleared of the allegations and Hegseth briefly approved his elevation before reversing course again days later.
• Gen. Dan Caine made a rare public appeal urging Hegseth to reinstate Sims’s promotion, marking an unprecedented military challenge to civilian authority.
• Pentagon insiders say Hegseth’s loyalty tests and threats of polygraphs have sown mistrust and undermined confidence in Pentagon leadership.
• A wave of firings and resignations has shrunk Hegseth’s civilian staff to a skeleton crew, raising concerns about operational stability and readiness.