War Secretary Pete Hegseth fired Navy chief of staff Jon Harrison on Friday, Politico reported, citing two current Pentagon officials and one former official.
"He will no longer serve as Chief of Staff to the Secretary of the Navy," the Pentagon said in a statement. "We are grateful for his service to the Department."
Harrison declined to comment to Politico. He was a Trump administration appointee who joined the service in January.
The Navy secretary's chief of staff typically ensures everything in the office runs efficiently, though Politico reported that Harrison had an unusually high level of authority.
Harrison and Navy Secretary John Phelan made numerous changes to the Navy's policy and budgeting offices, while seeking to limit the influence of the undersecretary job, Politico reported.
Hung Cao was confirmed as Navy undersecretary this week. Phelan and Harrison had reassigned several aides who were supposed to help Cao navigate the position and had planned to interview future military assistants for Cao, Politico reported.
Sources told Politico Phelan and Harrison were worried Cao would undercut their efforts to centralize authority within the Navy. A spokesperson for Phelan denied the allegations.
President Donald Trump nominated Cao, a Navy veteran, after his unsuccessful bid in Virginia's 2024 U.S. Senate race.
Trump has made rebuilding the shipbuilding industry a top priority of his administration.
Hegseth has fired several top aides and the uniformed leaders of the Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard since taking over the Pentagon.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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