Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has forced out a widely respected Army colonel who worked as a spokesperson for one of President Donald Trump’s perceived enemies.
Col. David Butler was a senior spokesperson for former Gen. Mark A. Milley, who served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 2019 to 2023 and later described Trump as “fascist to the core” during the 2024 election.
More recently, Butler was a spokesperson and media strategist for Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, a close personal friend of Vice President J.D. Vance who has played an increasingly prominent role in the Trump administration after a series of missteps and scandals on Hegseth’s part.
Last week, Hegseth demanded that Driscoll fire Butler, according to The Washington Post.
It was the second time since September that the defense secretary had raised the issue, sources told the paper, and Butler’s prior work for Milley appeared to be a key factor in the effort to oust him.
Driscoll had resisted Hegseth’s demands for months, Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin reported.
But several months ago, Butler was included in a list of about three dozen promotion-eligible Army officers that was supposed to be sent to the White House.
It was never relayed in part because Butler appeared on the list, according to the Post. Hegseth reportedly has concerns about a handful of the officers selected by the Army board, but by law he can’t remove them, Griffin reported.
After Hegseth told Driscoll to fire Butler last week, the colonel decided to retire so his colleagues’ promotions would not be held up any longer. Sources told both the Post and Fox News that Butler was a gifted professional who was an asset to the Army.
“We greatly appreciate Col. Dave Butler’s lifetime of service in America’s Army and to our nation,” Driscoll said in a statement to the Post. “Dave has been an integral part of the Army’s transformation efforts. He will be missed and I sincerely wish him tremendous success in his upcoming retirement after 28 years of service.”
Butler and Hegseth declined to comment.
The Daily Beast has reached out as well.
The forced retirement was just Hegseth’s latest effort to punish Trump’s political opponents with military connections.
The former Fox News host suspended Milley’s security clearance, revoked his security detail, and ordered a Pentagon inspector general to review his past actions.
He also took down Milley’s official portrait at the Pentagon, just as Trump took down former President Joe Biden’s White House portrait, and has targeted other nonpartisan military officers who worked for Milley on the Joint Staff.
Gen. James Mingus and Lt. Gen Douglas Sims were both passed over for promotions because of their ties to Milley.
Hegseth also sought to strip Sen. Mark Kelly of his rank and pension after Kelly and five other Democratic members of Congress released a video citing the Military Code of Justice and reminding service members that they had a duty to disobey illegal orders.
A federal judge appointed by President George W. Bush issued a blistering opinion blocking Hegseth’s effort to censure and demote Kelly, a combat veteran and former astronaut who retired in 2011 with the rank of captain.
Hegseth also reportedly has a special dislike for Driscoll partly because he’s the one person the secretary can’t fire, thanks to his close relationship with Vance, and in part because he’s been repeatedly floated as a potential replacement for Hegseth, Puck reported last year.
Both men have denied any tension or conflict between them.
But in November, Hegseth was passed over in favor of Driscoll to attend peace talks in Kyiv, Ukraine, as part of Trump’s failed effort to end Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion.
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