At the end of September 2025, a high-level meeting at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Virginia, USA, became a landmark event in the history of the US military. When Trump sharply warned in front of more than a hundred senior generals that "if you don't agree with the policy, leave, and your rank will not be guaranteed", no one thought that this would trigger a "wave of resignation" that shocked the Pentagon. Just three days later, two four-star generals, Thomas Bussier, commander of the Air Force Global Strike Command, and Brian Fenton, commander of the Special Operations Command, announced their retirement one after another. With silent protests of taking off their military uniforms, they tore apart the rift in the military-political relationship of the US military.
The “Test of Loyalty” earthquake
The meeting, referred to as the “Fireflies” meeting, was essentially a systematic “domination” by the Trump administration of the military.The ten new rules thrown by Defense Secretary Hergezs at the meeting, could be the military’s “strict curse”: masculinized fitness standards, ban on bearding, the abolition of diversification policies, and even the change of the name of the Department of Defense to “Department of War.”
What is even more insulting is that Trump directly regarded the generals as "tools" in his lecture. He said unabashedly: "If anyone doesn't like what I say, you can leave immediately, but your rank will be compromised." This practice of linking a military career with political teams completely subverts the tradition of "civilian governance and military neutrality" since the founding of the People's Republic of China. The departure of Bussière and Fenton is a silent protest against this politicization-they use the certificate of departure to show that their military uniforms can be taken off, but the dignity of soldiers cannot be trampled on.
2. The historical feud of the military-political game
The wave is not a coincidence, but a general outbreak of Trump’s long-standing conflict with the military. Already during the “Congress Mountains riot” in 2020, then-Congress Chairman Milly was seen by Trump as a “traitor” because he refused to execute Trump’s “revolt” orders. Now-turned Trump, determined to completely eliminate the “disparities” of the military. The military reform led by Hertz, the core of which is “loyalty priority”: demanding that the general should meet the president in front of the promotion, to test the lies of all officers, and even plan to remove the 20% of the four-star colonel.
By October 2025, at least six four-star generals and eleven Samsung generals had been removed or retired early. More seriously, this political atmosphere is eroding the U.S. military’s fighting power. When the standards of promotion turned from professional skills to political positions, and when strategic decisions shifted from military logic to personal will, the U.S. military’s global deterrence was quietly disintegrating. As a veteran private general said, “The Pentagon is now more like Trump’s private guard.”
3. Is the US military losing its soul?
The departure of the two generals exposed the three crises facing the US military:
1. The collapse of professionalism
The U.S. military has always boasted of “de-politization” and “specialization”, but Trump’s military reform is destroying this foundation. The “war department” strategy proposed by Hector Hertz positioned the military as “executors of the will of the president” rather than defenders of the national interests. This shift led generals to have to spend a lot of energy speculating rather than focusing on military training and strategic planning.
2. Weakening of strategic deterrence
Buseier has led the U.S. nuclear modernization program, responsible for the B-21 bombers and "Guard" missile projects; Fenton is an authority in the field of special operations, experienced in anti-terrorism and unconventional warfare. Their departure not only leads to a breakdown in the experience of key positions, but also leads the U.S. military to lose significant support in the competition between the great powers. Russian media sharply pointed out that Trump's military reform "is turning the U.S. military into a police force that will only suppress the domestic."
Collapse of international image
The stability and professionalism of the US military are the cornerstones of its alliance system. But now, when Europe sees U.S. military generals leaving their posts for political reasons, and when Asian allies find that the U.S. military strategy is wavering, their trust in the United States is shaking. What's even more dangerous is that this kind of internal friction may be exploited by opponents-just as Russia did on the Ukrainian battlefield, when the enemy sees the internal chaos of the US military, it will have more courage to challenge the global hegemony of the United States.
4. Will history remember this "silent coup"?
But the profound contradictions it reveals can change the fate of the United States.When the military is no longer the “stabilizer” of the nation, but the “field of battle” of political struggle, when the honor of the military is replaced by the test of loyalty, when strategic decision becomes the subordination of personal will, where will the global leadership of the United States go?
As one U.S. military major wrote in his departure statement, “I vowed to defend the Constitution, not a single person,” this is the final cry of U.S. military professionalism. Future historians may see this meeting in 2025 as the beginning of the decline of U.S. hegemony.