United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday that he was firing Adm. Lisa Franchetti (Medill ’85), the 33rd U.S. Chief of Naval Operations.
“Under President Trump, we are putting in place new leadership that will focus our military on its core mission of deterring, fighting and winning wars,” Hegseth wrote in his statement.
President Joe Biden nominated Franchetti for the role in July 2023, citing her “extensive operational and policy experience.” The Senate subsequently confirmed her in November 2023, making her the first female officer to serve as the Navy’s top officer and the first female member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Franchetti spent half of her nearly 40-year career at sea. She commanded a destroyer ship, a destroyer squadron, aircraft carriers, the entirety of the naval force in Korea and eventually the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea.
Joint Chiefs of Staff typically serve four-year terms, often extending service between multiple administrations. It is rare for an officer in this position to be replaced in the middle of their tenure.
Franchetti and Coast Guard Adm. Linda Fagan, a four-star female admiral, were the first two chief officers to be relieved of their duties since President Donald Trump took office Jan. 20.
In addition to Franchetti, the Trump Administration fired a handful of top military officers Friday, including Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Email: mayaikenberry2026@u.northwestern.edu
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