The Department of Defense has withdrawn the scheduled appearances of about a dozen military leaders expected to speak this week at the Aspen Security Forum.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth confirmed the decision not to have senior military leaders attend the forum on Monday. Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson told Just The News the decision was made because the department “has no interest in legitimizing an organization that has invited former officials who have been the architects of chaos abroad and failure at home.”

Recommended Stories

• US and Australia commence major military training exercise Talisman Sabre
• As NATO chief arrives in Washington, Trump promises big shipments of weapons to Ukraine that Europe will pay for ‘100%’
• Court rules Lloyd Austin had authority to throw out plea deals for 9/11 coconspirators

The forum is typically one of the most high-profile national security events and usually features current and former senior military and department officials, as well as relevant officials from the State Department and National Security Council from administrations of both parties.

“They are antithetical to the America First values of this administration. Senior representatives of the Department of Defense will no longer be participating in an event that promotes the evil of globalism, disdain for our great country, and hatred for the President of the United States,” Wilson added.

The military officials listed on the agenda who will no longer appear include Gen. Stephen Whiting, commander of U.S. Space Command; Gen. Randall Reed, commander of U.S. Transportation Command; Lt. Gen. John Brennan, deputy commander of U.S. Africa Command; Vice Adm. Frank “Trey” Whitworth, director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency; Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command; David Cattler, director of the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency; Gen. Bryan Fenton, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command; Emil Micahel, undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering; and Doug Beck, director of the Defense Innovation Unit.

Other officials from the Trump administration who still seem intent on attending the event include Adam Boehler, the State Department’s special envoy for hostage affairs; Tom Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria; Paras Malik, the counselor to the secretary of the Treasury and the department’s chief artificial intelligence officer; and Matthew Noyes, the Secret Service’s cyber policy and strategy director.

The Aspen Security Forum, which is organized by the Aspen Institute, is described as the “premier national security and foreign policy conference.”

Multiple former Biden administration officials are expected to speak at the forum, including Brett McGurk, former national security council coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa; former U.S. Permanent Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Julianne Smith; Wally Adeyemo, former deputy secretary of the Treasury; and former national security adviser Jake Sullivan.

TRUMP’S FIRST SIX MONTHS TESTS US DEFENSE STOCKPILES — AND LIMITED PRODUCTION

The decision to pull senior defense and military officials is representative of Hegseth’s more broad efforts to reshape the military and refocus the department on the priorities he’s laid out, which include the elimination of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, gender neutral standards, and more, which he argues have detracted from the military’s core mission.

Hegesth’s decision to withdraw the appearances at the forum stands in contrast to his own appearance at the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit. Despite Hegseth’s career in conservative media, the Pentagon has a long-standing tradition of going to great lengths to remain apolitical.