The Pentagon announces its intention to purge the Defense Advisory Committees of Trump allies

Washington-SANA

The Pentagon has announced the suspension of the activities of advisory committees in which former President Donald Trump appointed dozens of his loyalists in the last days of his term.

According to Agence France-Presse, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced in a memo yesterday to heads of departments and leaders that 42 advisory committees tasked with providing outside advice to the Pentagon in various fields will be reviewed to determine whether they will bring tangible benefits to the ministry.

Accordingly, he indicated that hundreds of experts will be excluded and the activities of many committees will be suspended until June, stressing that most experts will be dismissed as of February 16.

It is noteworthy that, shortly after the US presidential elections last November, the Trump administration expelled former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright from the Defense Policy Board, which is tasked with helping to set up the US defense strategy, and appointed in their place the former Republican parliamentarian Newt Gingrich, who is considered a hawk and a former general. Anthony Tata who became a commentator on Fox News and became famous for his anti-Islam tweets.

Trump had also appointed Corey Lewandowski and David Bossi, campaign officials in the said council, which is supposed to provide an independent opinion on the main contracts awarded by the Pentagon.