Sen. Ossoff, Colleagues Launch Inquiry into Reports That Hegseth Denied Military Officers’ Promotions for Political Reasons

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff is demanding answers after reports that Secretary Hegseth denied military officers' promotions for political reasons.

Today, Sen. Ossoff led Senate colleagues in launching an inquiry with Department of Defense (DoD) Secretary Pete Hegseth demanding answers over reports that military officers were denied promotions due to political reasons.

Secretary Hegseth reportedly blocked the promotion of eight Navy captains to be one-star admirals -- including the promotions of two female officers and two Black officers.

Sen. Ossoff is joined by Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Jeffrey Merkley (D-OR).

"We write concerning reports of your unprecedented decision to personally remove qualified Officers from consideration for promotion to Brigadier General, Major General and Flag Officer. These actions raise concerns regarding the criteria, process, and authorities utilized to make changes to promotion recommendations after completion of the highly regulated military promotion board process," Sen. Ossoff and the group wrote to Secretary Hegseth.

"We recognize the importance of having the most qualified Officers serving in these positions of great responsibility. While there are valid reasons to remove Officers from consideration for promotion for reasons that often involve sensitive or adverse information; public reports indicate your actions may be politically motivated, disregards the many achievements of these Officers, and shirks the idea of an apolitical military. Additionally, there are reports that your decisions are affecting morale among all ranks of Officers," Sen. Ossoff and the group also wrote to Secretary Hegseth.

Sen. Ossoff continues working to hold DoD accountable and strengthen Congressional oversight.

In February, Sen. Ossoff and Senate colleagues launched an inquiry with Secretary Hegseth demanding answers overreports that the Agency plans to let the xAI chatbot, Grok, operate inside of DoD networks, despite reports that the chatbot has promoted antisemitic and other dangerous content.

Last May, Sen. Ossoff led a group of Senators urging Secretary Hegseth to protect the Civilian Protection Center of Excellence at DoD to minimize civilian deaths during combat.

Last February, Sen. Ossoff led a group of Senators in a letter to Secretary Hegseth opposing the mass detention of migrants at Guantanamo Bay, which they warn poses risks to human rights and risks long-term damage to military readiness.

Click here to read the Senator's inquiry.

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