Pentagon clears out advisory boards, citing worries above very last-moment Trump picks

Protection Secretary Lloyd Austin has dismissed each member of the Pentagon’s advisory boards in a sweeping move fueled by concern that the Trump administration had rushed by way of a series of very last-moment appointments, defense officers stated Tuesday.

The transfer affects various hundred members of about 40 advisory boards, together with dozens of people today who had been named to the posts in the closing days of former President Donald Trump’s tenure.

Amid individuals who were dismissed are very partisan figures this sort of as Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign supervisor David Bossie, a former Trump deputy campaign manager Republican previous Property Speaker Newt Gingrich and retired Army Brig. Gen. Anthony Tata. As a substitute of singling out Trump appointees, the transfer applies to all board users, like those people appointed before Trump’s presidency.

“I am directing the speedy suspension of all advisory committee functions until eventually the overview is completed until otherwise directed by myself or the deputy secretary of protection,” Austin reported in a memo introduced Tuesday.

The advisory boards, whose users are not paid out, give direction to the Protection Division about policy, science, company and a lot of other topics. To make way for new pro-Trump loyalists, the Trump White House in some instances taken out longtime board members.

“There is no concern that the frenetic action that occurred to the composition of so many boards, in just the period of time of November to January, deeply involved the secretary and undoubtedly assisted to generate him to this selection,” Pentagon push secretary John Kirby explained to reporters.

Austin decided that dismissing all users of the advisory boards and asking for a full critique of their things to do was the most equitable, effective way to address issue, two defense officers advised reporters in an before briefing.

Aside from ordering all board customers to resign by Feb. 16, Austin suspended the boards’ functions and ordered an elaborate evaluate of all Defense Department advisory boards to analyze their role, utility and compositions, according to a memo produced by the Pentagon.

The Wall Street Journal very first documented the final decision.