General Charles Hamilton, one of the US Army’s most senior officers, has been dismissed following an investigation into allegations that he improperly influenced the promotion of a junior officer.
As one of only 12 four-star generals in the US Army, his dismissal marks a significant disciplinary action within the U.S. military.
The investigation, conducted by the Department of the Army Inspector General, concluded that Hamilton had used his authority to interfere with the Army’s Command Assessment Programme and a centralised selection board. It found that he had attempted to influence the promotion of a lieutenant colonel under his mentorship to a command position, which violated established protocols for impartiality in leadership selection.
In response, US Army Secretary Christine Wormuth relieved Hamilton of his command of Army Materiel Command, an organisation responsible for logistics and supply chain management.
Hamilton had already been suspended in March while the investigation was ongoing. Lieutenant General Chris Mohan has been serving as the acting commander and will continue in the role until a permanent replacement is appointed.
Details of the Investigation
According to the Inspector General’s findings, Hamilton improperly attempted to leverage his position to influence the outcome of the officer’s selection for command. US Army spokeswoman Cynthia O. Smith confirmed that the investigation identified interference with the Army’s Command Assessment Programme, calling it a breach of professional standards.
Hamilton, who mentored the junior officer involved, defended his actions in a letter to Secretary Wormuth, stating that systemic bias and discrimination in the US Army’s selection process disproportionately affect officers of colour. Both Hamilton and the junior officer, who has not been named, are Black.
However, the investigation found that Hamilton’s actions overstepped the boundaries of appropriate mentorship and violated policies designed to ensure fairness in promotions.
The US Army stressed that there was no evidence of wrongdoing by the lieutenant colonel in question, and her identity has been withheld as she is not implicated in any misconduct.
Lieutenant General Chris Mohan will remain in his role as acting commander of Army Materiel Command until a permanent leader is appointed. The command plays a crucial role in equipping US forces globally and ensuring operational readiness.
Don’t hang about do they, anyone remember when one of ours was sacked?
No. They get promoted instead.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7038967/Royal-Navy-sack-exceptional-popular-captain-drove-official-car-weekends.html
General Hamilton was clearly entirely wrong to say that the selection board process was biased against black officers. He himself got promoted to 4-star rank over the course of several decades!
By his actions he may have set back race relations in the US Army by several decades.
A principle that deserves much wider application.
One of Donald Trump’s first actions as President will be to set up a board to evaluate all of the three- and four-star flag officers in the US Armed Forces. A purge is coming. Cue the wailing and gnashing of teeth by the TDS sufferers.
I thought the purge was about getting the armed forces ready for his next coup attempt?
Ahh…Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS)–had to Google that acronym. 🤔😉 DEI initiatives probably had reasonable intent when initiated, however, obviously carried ultimately to excess, as in this instance. One hopes the true warriors will remain standing after the coming Inquisition. 🤞
Pull the race card. Lose the title of a Black Man
Request wall to wall counseling