The Defense Department reportedly will delay firing civilian probationary employees so that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and the Pentagon's Office of General Counsel can learn how U.S. military readiness could be affected, CNN reported Friday.
Sources told CNN that the Office of Personnel Management is using a broad justification for the firings, arguing that the probationary employees no longer are needed.
In a video released Thursday, Hegseth explained the department's planned terminations.
"We're starting [cuts] with the poor performers among our probationary employees because it's common sense that you want the best and brightest," he said. "So, when you look at headcount, we're going to be thoughtful; but we're also going to be aggressive up and down the chain to find the places where we can ensure the best and brightest are promoted based on merit."
Hegseth added that DOD will implement a hiring freeze to take time to identify better hiring practices as they relate to finding the most "hard charging" employees that are central to the department's core warfighting mission.
Hegseth announced last week that he will welcome the Department of Government Efficiency to audit the Department of Defense. Two days later it was reported that Pentagon officials were preparing lists of weapons to discard in anticipation of cuts suggested by DOGE.
CNN reported on Wednesday that Defense's mass terminations of more than 50,000 civilian employees across could run afoul of Title 10 section 129a of the U.S. code.
That law says that the defense secretary "may not reduce the civilian workforce programmed full-time equivalent levels unless the Secretary conducts an appropriate analysis" of how those firings could impact the lethality and readiness, which take precedence over cost concerns.
Pentagon lawyers then began reviewing the legality of the planned firings more closely, officials told CNN.
CNN also reported Thursday that Hegseth could soon move to fire more than half a dozen generals and flag officers.
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Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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