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(CNN) - US Navy Secretary Richard Spencer was "fired for proposing a secret agreement with the White House" that involves the case of Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher, according to a senior defense official.
Gallagher was found guilty of discrediting armed services after posing next to the body of a dead ISIS fighter, which goes against the rules.
He was then downgraded in rank, a decision that President Donald Trump reversed a week ago in a measure that angered military officers. The military officers then advanced with the process to review Gallagher's status in the elite group.
Spencer was proposing a review with a secret guarantee that Gallagher would be allowed to maintain his status as a SEAL, the official said. Spencer, the official said, was not fired for not fulfilling Trump's wishes, as the president did not want a review at all.
Spencer did not follow his own chain of command, namely Defense Secretary Mark Esper, and headed straight for the White House, a violation of military policy, the official said.
Esper asked Spencer's resignation on Sunday after "losing confidence in him," according to a statement issued by Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman. Spencer's private request to restore Gallagher's rank and allow him to withdraw with his SEAL emblem directly contradicted his public position, according to the statement.
"I am deeply concerned about this behavior shown by a senior Department of Defense official," Esper said in the statement. “Unfortunately, as a result, I have determined that Secretary Spencer no longer has my confidence to continue in his position. I wish Richard the best. ”
When asked for a comment, a Spencer spokesman directed CNN to the Pentagon statement.
The Washington Post reported first on Esper's request to resign from Spencer.
The senior defense official said Esper learned of Spencer's talks with the White House on Friday, but that Spencer's proposal was never approved.
When Spencer spoke during the weekend at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia, Canada, Esper felt that "his public statements did not match" with what he had been doing privately, according to the official.
Last week, Trump tweeted that he would not let the Navy punish Gallagher, saying: “The Navy is NOT going to take Eddie Gallagher's Trident Pin from Warfighter and Navy Seal. This case was handled very badly from the beginning. Get back to work! ” The Trident Pin emblem used by Navy SEALs is awarded after completing an intense qualification program and symbolizes membership in the elite military community.
The president's decision not only served to restore Gallagher's rank but also to forgive two other members of the service, and in doing so he ignored the advice of Esper and other senior military officers.
The New York Times reported on Saturday that Spencer and Rear Admiral Collin Green, the admiral who oversees the SEALs, threatened to resign for Trump's possible intervention. Spencer denied later Saturday that he or Green made such a threat.
Esper decided that Gallagher would maintain his status because "he has little confidence that Gallagher now receives a fair shake from the Navy," the official told CNN. Gallagher is expected to withdraw from the Navy on November 30.
Navy SEALS