By Lucia I Suarez Sang
April 4, 2026 / 3:46 PM EDT / CBS News
Ousted Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George told Pentagon officials in an outgoing email that U.S. soldiers deserve “courageous leaders of character” after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asked him to step down and take immediate retirement.
CBS News exclusively reported earlier this week on George’s ousting, with one source saying Hegseth wants someone in the role who will implement his and President Trump’s vision for the Army. The email, attributed to George and confirmed as authentic by CBS News, circulated online after his removal. A U.S. official said George sent the message to the undersecretary and assistant secretary of the Army, as well as to the three- and four-star generals and officers on his staff.
“It has been the greatest privilege to serve beside you and lead Soldiers in support of our country,” he wrote. “I know you’ll all continue to stay laser-focused on the mission, continue innovating, and relentlessly cut through the bureaucracy to get our warfighters what they need to win on the modern battlefield.”
He added, “Our soldiers are truly the best in the world – they deserve tough training and courageous leaders of character. I have no doubt you will all continue to lead with courage, character, and grit.”
George served as the senior military assistant to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin from 2021 to 2022 during the Biden administration and became Army chief of staff, typically a four-year post, in 2023.
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement that George “will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately. The Department of War is grateful for General George’s decades of service to our nation. We wish him well in his retirement.”
The current vice chief of staff of the Army, Gen. Christopher LaNeve, who was formerly Hegseth’s military aide, will be acting Army chief of staff.
Hegseth has removed more than a dozen senior military officers, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. C.Q. Brown, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Slife and Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse.
Jennifer Jacobs, Eleanor Watson and James LaPorta contributed to this report.