Hegseth aide fired over Pentagon data leak - Politico
The Pentagon has fired Principal Assistant Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth over a data breach scandal.
This is reported by Censor.NET with reference to Politico.
According to the publication, Joe Kasper, the chief of staff to US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, will leave his post in the coming days.
This comes amid a high-profile scandal involving the leakage of confidential information from the Pentagon, which has caused serious personnel upheaval in the defense department.
According to US media reports, Kasper will take a new position in the same department.
However, his departure comes after several officials close to Hegseth were placed on leave due to the leak investigation, including advisor Dan Caldwell, Deputy Chief of Staff Darin Selnick, and Chief of Staff to the Deputy Secretary of Defense Colin Carroll.
According to sources, Carroll and Selnick plan to sue over the dismissal, considering it illegal. In turn, some Democrats are using the situation as evidence of Pete Hagel's inability to effectively lead the Defense Department.
These personnel decisions were the culmination of a week of crisis in the Pentagon: the situation was complicated by the leak of classified information in the Signal messenger, in which Secretary of Defense Pete Hagseth himself was involved.
Elon Musk's recent visit to the government agency also caused a mixed reaction.
According to Politico's Pentagon sources, the conflict between Kasper and some of the dismissed advisers was personal.
At the same time, the defense department itself fears that the destabilization of the leadership will affect the management of the entire system.
"The building is completely destroyed, and it's really affecting the secretary's leadership," a senior U.S. defense official said.
