Hegseth called U.S. military generals “clowns” and fired many of them in latest speech

4 sources · 4 support

What we can confirm

Authoritative reporting confirms that Pete Hegseth used the phrase “ideological clowns” in a September 30, 2026 speech and said that 10% of generals and admirals had been fired, alongside an additional 10% reduction in general-officer positions. The claim is broadly accurate, although “clowns” referred to ideological figures rather than necessarily all U.S. military generals, and the reported reductions included both firings and eliminated positions.