Pentagon Ousts Trump Appointees in Sweeping Purge of Advisory Boards
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Feb. 1 announced the ouster of hundreds of members of the Pentagon’s advisory boards, in a sweeping move that affects a series of last-minute appointees by the Trump administration, according to a Department of Defense (DOD) memo.
Austin wrote in a memo (pdf) on Jan. 30 that all members of 31 Pentagon advisory boards would be fired, effective Feb. 16. Additionally, a total of 40 advisory boards listed in the memo are to be subjected to a “zero-based review,” which will involve an “in-depth business case of every sponsored advisory committee, supported by fact-based evidence for [its] continued utilization,” a process that could lead to their future dissolution and dismissal of members.
New Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, left, has stripped several hundred appointees of their advisory board posts including Trump allies Newt Gingrich, top right, and Corey Lewandowski.
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FILE PHOTO: Retired General Lloyd Austin testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee during his confirmation hearing to be the next Secretary of Defense in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, U.S. January 19, 2021. Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool via REUTERS
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has stripped several hundred appointees of their posts on Pentagon advisory boards, a number of whom took office at the end of President Donald Trump’s administration, two U.S. officials said on Tuesday.
The appointees include Anthony Tata, a former acting senior defense official who in 2018 called former President Barack Obama a “terrorist leader” and was placed on the Defense Policy Board on Jan. 19, the last full day of the Trump administration.
Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead
By JORDYN PHELPS and BENJAMIN SIEGEL, ABC News
(WASHINGTON) While President Donald Trump has refused to acknowledge that he lost the election, he’s handling the lame-duck period as his predecessors did in one respect: awarding plum appointments to key allies, donors and friends on his way out of the White House.
Since the election, the White House has announced more than 100 appointments and nominations – some to key administration posts, but also to various advisory boards and commissions, in a practice also done by the Bush and Obama White Houses.
He’s named former White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway to the Air Force Academy Board of Visitors despite having no obvious connection to the school or the military, along with Heidi Stirrup, an administration official recently barred from the Justice Department over claims she pressured officials for information related to election fraud.
By JORDYN PHELPS and BENJAMIN SIEGEL, ABC News (WASHINGTON) — While President Donald Trump has refused to acknowledge that he lost the election, he’s handling the lame-duck period as his predecessors did in one respect: awarding plum appointments to key allies, donors and friends on his way out of the White House. Since the election, [.]