WASHINGTON — President Trump plans to crash Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s gathering of the military’s top generals at Marine Corps Base Quantico on Tuesday.
Hegseth recently summoned the top brass on short notice without telling them why, spooking critics. It then emerged that he just plans to deliver a “rally the troops” message.
“It’s really just a very nice meeting talking about how well we’re doing militarily, talking about being in great shape, talking about a lot of good, positive things. It’s just a good message,” Trump explained to NBC News on Sunday.
“We have some great people coming in, and it’s just an ‘esprit de corps.’ You know the expression ‘esprit de corps?’ That’s all it’s about. We’re talking about what we’re doing, what they’re doing and how we’re doing,” Trump said — adding he will be at the private powwow.
Critics initially speculated that Hegseth may have been eyeing something drastic, such as a purge of leadership. In May, Hegseth, an Army National Guard veteran, trimmed down military leadership in a bid to boost efficiency.
His directive is calling on “all senior officers with the rank of brigadier general or above” to attend the meeting in Virginia. There are more than 800 admirals and generals in the US military.
Those individuals are stationed at US military outposts all over the world. Such gatherings are unusual.
The meeting will take place about 30 miles outside of Washington, DC.
Hegseth has long been a staunch proponent of tightening military standards and reviving the warfighting spirit among US troops.
White House officials said Hegseth intends to be upbeat about the military’s accomplishments and lay out his vision for the Department of War going forward.
Trump meanwhile shrugged off initial panic from detractors over the military summit.
“I love it, I mean, I think it’s great,” he told reporters Thursday of the upcoming meeting. “Let [Hegseth] be friendly with the generals and admirals from all over the world.”
“You act like this is a bad thing. Isn’t it nice that people are coming from all over the world to be with us?” he said.
The meeting will take place on the eve of the 11:59 p.m. deadline for Congress to take action to avert a partial government shutdown.
If Congress deadlocks over the funding lapse, there are some logistical concerns that a partial shutdown could complicate the ability of top military brass to return to their outposts across the world in an expeditious manner.
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