Why Has Pete Hesgeth Suddenly Fired Navy Chief of Staff Jon Harrison?

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday dismissed Navy Chief of Staff Jon Harrison, a powerful top aide who had played a central role in reshaping the service’s bureaucracy, according to a report by Politico. The abrupt move came just days after the Senate confirmed Hung Cao as undersecretary of the Navy, two defence officials and a former official told Politico. In a statement, the Pentagon confirmed Harrison’s departure, saying: “He will no longer serve as Chief of Staff to the Secretary of the Navy. We are grateful for his service to the Department.”Traditionally a behind-the-scenes position, the Navy secretary’s chief of staff is responsible for keeping the office running smoothly. But Harrison, a Trump administration appointee who joined the Navy in January, wielded an unusually high level of influence. Together with Navy Secretary John Phelan, Harrison had introduced sweeping reforms to the Navy’s policy and budgeting offices and sought to curb the authority of the undersecretary role. Politico reported that Harrison and Phelan had reassigned several aides who were meant to assist Cao in his new position and had planned to personally interview all future military assistants for the undersecretary to ensure decisions flowed through the secretary’s office. Cao, a high-profile Navy veteran and former Republican Senate candidate in Virginia, was nominated by President Donald Trump. The dismissal marks the latest in a series of high-level changes at the Pentagon. Earlier this year, Hegseth removed several top aides and replaced the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff along with the uniformed leaders of the Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard. Trump has pledged to revive America’s shipbuilding industry, though major Navy programmes remain years behind schedule, with both US allies and rivals now outpacing the country’s shipyard productivity.