Hegseth’s Chief of Staff to Depart Pentagon Friday

Joe Kasper, Chief of Staff to U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, is set to leave the Pentagon on Friday, marking the fifth senior aide to depart from Hegseth’s office in the past week.

Kasper was initially expected to be reassigned within the Department of Defense, but Politico reported Thursday that he will now be leaving the Pentagon entirely. He will, however, continue advising Secretary Hegseth in a limited capacity as a “Special Government Employee,” a designation that allows him to work no more than 130 days per year in a government role.

Kasper is believed to have played a key role in the dismissal of three senior aides to Secretary Hegseth last year: Senior Advisor Dan Caldwell, Deputy Chief of Staff Darin Selnick, and Stephen Feinberg, Chief of Staff to the Deputy Secretary of Defense. Another aide was reassigned at the time.

Although the wave of firings was reportedly triggered by a series of leaks from within the Pentagon—including details of Hegseth’s participation in a Signal chat discussing imminent strikes on Yemen, operational plans involving the Panama Canal, and revelations that the U.S. had ceased intelligence gathering for Ukraine—some officials believe the moves were motivated by personal tensions. Politico quoted one defense official last week as saying, “Joe just didn’t like those guys.”

Secretary Hegseth is also facing scrutiny over his own involvement in potential information leaks. In addition to the aforementioned Signal group chat with fellow Trump administration officials, Hegseth reportedly participated in a second, private Signal group that included his wife and discussed classified operational plans. That group chat was allegedly conducted using Hegseth’s personal cell phone.